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The Kingdom Animalia (= Metazoa ) is one of a handful of lineages rooted far back in the branching "tree" that represents the history of life on Earth. This lineage that is composed of those organisms we know as "animals" represents one of the three major origins of multicellularity (the other two large and diverse groups of multicellular organisms are the fungi and the green plants). It is difficult to list characteristics that apply to all animals, since various branches of the animal tree have undergone a range of significant modifications. However, most animals obtain energy from other organisms. They generally feed on them as predators (killing and eating a prey item); parasites, including herbivores feeding on plants (feeding on their "prey" without killing it, at least not immediately); or detritivores (ingesting tiny bits of decomposing organic material such as fallen leaves).
Animals (Animalia