In a radical departure from the plant lineage, our ancestors—the Unikonts—simplified their propulsion system. They stopped using two “pulling” flagella and narrowed it down to a single motor. This made the cell more streamlined and paved the way for more specialized movement. While some Unikonts (like our cousins the Amoebas) eventually gave up on flagella altogether to “crawl” by oozing their bodies, our direct line stayed committed to the efficiency of the single-propeller design.
Unikonts: Single-Motor flagella Reform
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Unikonts: Single-Motor flagella Reform
~1.3 Billion Years Ago (+/- 100 million)
Transition to a Single Flagellum
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About 1.3 billion years ago, our animal-fungi ancestor stopped using two pulling flagella and narrowed it down to a single motor.
Subject: Animal-Fungi Evolution.
By 1.3 billion years ago, our animal-fungi ancestor, the Unikonts, stopped using two pulling flagella and narrowed it down to one. This single motor will evolve over the next 100 million years or so into a true Posterior Flagellum. The distinquishing cell trait that some mushrooms and humans share today.
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