Photogoliathpseudofoliage

Photogoliathpseudofoliage split from their ancestor and diversified. These cells are radial and form leaf-like pseudopods on their top and walk with ordinary pseudopods on their bottom. This allows them to increase their surface area for photosynthesis while retaining the ability to crawl along the sediment. They only move during the day, tracking the sun and passively feeding on benthic cells and detritus as they walk over them. They do not actively hunt other cells at all. They are very common, though they do not form complete coverings of the sediment, as they are easily disturbed and injured by fauna and strong currents as well as consumed by large planktivores after being disturbed.

Photogoliathpseudofoliage have put their tendency to be in close proximity with others of their kind to good use. When they collide with a member of the same species, they quickly connect and exchange a few nuclei, keeping their genetics fresh and varied. Usually, however, they avoid collision so that they have plenty of space to move around, and individuals may be separated by a gap as large as a centimeter as a result. They will come together to exchange nuclei and nutrients when times are tough, however.

There are many species of Photogoliathpseudofoliage. Species in less nutrient-rich regions such as reefs tend to move more, therefore finding and consuming more detritus or benthic cells as a supplement. Polar species will go dormant for part of the year, becoming buried under sediment over time; when the light returns, they wriggle free of the sand and stretch their leaf-pseudopods to the sky. Species can be very difficult to distinguish, as they all resemble blobs with slightly leaf-shaped blobs attached; the fact that they have little defense against hybridization further complicates the matter.