Animal
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Definition
The term animal is used to refer to any living organism that falls in the animal kingdom, one of the kingdoms in the six-kingdom system of classification of species (the other kingdoms are plants, bacteria, archaea, fungi and protists). The following attributes collectively separate animals from other living organisms:
Attribute | Value for animals | Other kingdoms that share (or may share) this attribute value | Kingdoms that don't share this attribute value |
---|---|---|---|
Cell type | eukaryotic cell | plants, fungi, protists | bacteria, archaea |
Cell type | does not have a cell wall | some protists (specifically, protozoa) | plants, fungi, bacteria, archaea |
Cellularity of organism | multicellular organism | plants, fungi | protists, bacteria, archaea |
Mode of nutrition | heterotrophic organism | some plants, some protists | most plants (including algae), fungi |
Nature of birth | embryos pass through a blastula stage | none | all other kingdoms |
The cells of animals are called animal cells. These differ in many important respects from the cells of organisms in other kingdoms.