Light signals in the form of intensity gradient, propagation direction, and wavelength elicit diverse mechanical responses ("photomechanical responese") in most organisms. The single cell ciliates, Stentor coeruleus and Blepharisma japonicum, are particularly sensitive to the light of visible wavelengths. In this paper, the way in which the seemingly sophisticated light signal transduction is triggered by the photosensory apparatus will be described in terms of the photoreceptor structure and photochemical function.