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Acrobatic choanoflagellates could help explain how multicellularity evolved

A new single-celled species forms groups of multiple individuals that change shape

choanoflagellates

A newly discovered species of single-celled choanoflagellates forms arrays of many individuals, which can rapidly morph from feeding mode (left, shown in false color) to swimming mode (right).

Thibaut Brunet

By Jonathan Lambert

- More than 2 years ago

There’s not much to a choanoflagellate. But a new species of these single-celled organisms, animals’ closest evolutionary relatives (SN: 7/29/15), could provide crucial clues to a fundamental question in biology: How did solitary cells band together long ago to form multicellular coalitions capable of moving, hunting and hiding?

Most choanoflagellates live simple, solitary lives.