Kingdom Monera: Characteristics, Classification

Kingdom Monera is one of the Five Kingdom Classification based on cell structure, mode of nutrition and body organisation. The Five Kingdom Classification system is a way of grouping living organisms. It divides living things into five groups: animals, plants, fungi, protists, and monera. Monera is a kingdom that contains single-celled organisms that lack a nucleus. This includes bacteria and archaea. 

Organisms that come under the umbrella of the Kingdom Monera are prokaryotes. The DNA of Monera organisms are not contained within the nucleus. These organisms generally live in damp environments such as hot springs, snow, deep oceans, or parasites. They do not have any organelle that is bound to their membranes. This is the only kingdom that has most of the identified microorganisms. We will discuss everything from the definition of the Monera classification, characteristics of the kingdom Monera, and‌ ‌more.‌ ‌Continue reading ‌to learn all the interesting‌ ‌facts‌ ‌about‌ the Monera kingdom classification.

What is Kingdom Monera?

Monera is classified based on their cell structure, their metabolic processes, and their evolutionary history. The Kingdom Monera is a grouping of single-celled organisms that includes bacteria and archaea. This Monera kingdom is different from other kingdoms in the Five Kingdom Classification by the lack of a nucleus and other organelles in the cell. Monera kingdom contains prokaryotes and sometime may also consist of eukaryotes. Prokaryotes are bacteria that lack a nucleus, while eukaryotes are archaea that have a nucleus.

These monerans are the simplest known organisms, but they nonetheless illustrate diverse evolutionary mechanisms that help them develop over time. They do not usually grow larger than the size of a single cell, which makes them difficult to see with the naked eye.

Classification of Kingdom Monera

The Kingdom Monera is subdivided into two major groups:

1. Archaebacteria: Ancient form of life that evolved separately from the bacteria and blue-green algae.
2. Eubacteria: It includes bacteria and Cyanobacteria (blue-green algae).

Also, some other Monerans are Mycoplasma, Actinomycetes, and Rickettsia.

Characteristics of Kingdom Monera

Now that we know about the classification of the kingdom, let us discuss all the characteristics of the Kingdom Monera:

1. They are unicellular. Some organisms of this kingdom may be colonial or filamentous. 
2. Kingdom Monera includes various unicellular organisms, such as Cyanobacteria or blue-green algae, Mycoplasma, Spirochaete, Actinomycetes, and Eubacteria.
3. Some of the organisms have cell walls (like bacteria and blue-green algae), while others lack cell walls (as in Mycoplasma).
4. Such organisms are prokaryotic, meaning they do not have a specific nucleus and lack cell organelles.
5. In this Kingdom Classification, no membrane-bound cellular organelles.
6. The respiration pattern may be aerobic or anaerobic.
7. The mode of nutrition is either autotrophic (as in blue-green algae and some bacteria) or heterotrophic (Mycoplasma and most bacteria). They may be saprophytic and parasitic as well.
8. The mode of reproduction in such organisms is asexual.
9. Under this kingdom, organisms have various nutrition modes, which could be autotrophic or heterotrophic.

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