What is a paramecium?

A paramecium is a small one celled (unicellular) living organism that can move, digest food, and reproduce. They belong to the kingdom of Protista, which is a group (family) of similar living micro-organisms. Micro-organism means they are a very small living cell. You might be able to see one as a tiny moving speck if your eyesight is extremely good but for any detail at all you need a microscope to look at and study them. They are about .02 inches long (.5mm). They are also famous for their predator-prey relationship with Didinium. Paramecium are known for their avoidance behavior. If an encounters a negative stimiulus, it is capable of rotating up to 360 degrees to find an escape route. WHAT DOES A PARAMECIUM LOOK LIKE? The paramecium is an oval, slipper shaped micro-organism, rounded at the front/top and pointed at the back/bottom. The pellicle, a stiff but elastic membrane that gives the paramecium a definite shape but allows some small changes. Covering the pellicle are many ...  more

A paramecium is a one-celled, animal like protist (meaning it consumes its food). It moves with cilia, which are little hairs around the membrane.  more

We share our world with countless trillions of these little animals. As a rule, we do not know the paramecia are there, because they are too small for our eyes to see. They are one cel1ed protozoa, teeming in lakes and riyers and fresh water streams . The slipper shaped paramecium is slightly more advanced than its shapeless, je114fied cousin, the amoeba. Its single cell is coated with a stiff material which gives it a permanent shape. It has a front end and a back end, and it is covered with hairy cilia, which it uses to wave its small body through the water.  more