Classifying Life’s
Diversity
Determining Relationship
Part 1
http://www.morning-earth.org/
How are Relationships Determined?
• Relationships among organisms are
determined by similarities in
– Structure
– Breeding behavior
– Geographical distribution
– Chromosomes
– Biochemistry
Structural Similarities
Rosa banksiae
Lady Banks' Rose
Rosa californica
California wild rose
Rosa canina
Dog Rose
Structural Similarities
Ursus arctos
Brown bear
Ursus americanus
American black bear
Ursus maritimus
polar bear
Breeding Behavior
Haliaeetus albicilla
White-tailed Eagle
Haliaeetus leucocephalus
Bald Eagle
Breeding Behavior
Canis lupus familiaris
Dog
Canis latrans
Coyote
Geographical Distribution
Geospiza conirostris
Large Cactus-finch (Galapagos)
Geospiza fortis
Medium Ground-finch (Galapagos)
Geographical Distribution
Carduelis citrinella
Citril Finch (Europe)
Carduelis carduelis
European Goldfinch
Chromosome Comparison
Pan troglodytes
Chimpanzee
Gorilla gorilla
Gorilla
Chromosome Comparison
Cabbage
Cauliflower
Brassica oleracea
Broccoli
Biochemistry
≠
Giant Panda (Ailuropoda melanoleuca)
Red Panda (Ailurus fulgens)
Biochemistry
Red Panda (Ailurus fulgens)
Raccoon (Procyon lotor)
Biochemistry
Giant Panda (Ailuropoda melanoleuca)
Brown Bear (Ursus arctos)
Tree of Life and
Phylogenetic Classification
http://tbi.montana.edu/
Tree of Life and
Phylogenetic Classification
• Phylogeny- classifies species, in comparison to
other species, based on most basic to most
detailed similarities.
• Tree of Life
– Trunk: what all living things have in common
– Lateral Branches: what each domain has in common
– Individual Branches: what each (taxa) Kingdom,
Phylum, Class, Order, Family, Genus, or Species has in
common
Note: each taxa does not contain the given traits of those
above it, but contains all the given traits below it.
Tree of Life
• Cladistics- classification based on phylogeny
that characterizes species (in a given taxon) on
a branch of a tree of life.
• Cladogram- a diagram that shows what
organisms are closely related to a specific
species.
Classifying Life’s
Diversity
The Six Kingdoms
Part 2
The Six Kingdoms
• Prokaryotes
– Archaebacteria
– Eubacteria
•
•
•
•
Protista
Fungi
Plantae
Animalia
The Six Kingdoms
• The main factors that determine which
kingdom an organism is classified in are
– Cellular structure
– Means of obtaining energy
Prokaryotes
• Prokaryotes- unicellular organisms that do not
have a true nucleus bound by a membrane.
– Archaebacteria
– Eubacteria
Archaebacteria
• Structure: unicellular; lack membrane-bound
nucleus
• Energy:
• Heterotrophy
• Autotrophy
– Some chemosynthetic
– Others photosynthetic
• Live in extreme environments
• Domain Archaea
Eubacteria
• Structure: unicellular; lack membrane-bound
nucleus
• Energy:
• Heterotrophy
• Autotrophy
– Some chemosynthetic
– Others photosynthetic
• Found everywhere but in extreme
environments
• Domain Bacteria
Protists
• Structure
– Some unicellular; some multicellular
– Lack complex organ system
• Energy
– Autotrophy (obtain energy like plants)
– Heterotrophy (obtain energy like animals)
• Domain Eukarya
Fungi
• Structure
– Some unicellular
– Some multicellular
• Energy
– Heterotrophy
– Absorb nutrients from organic materials in
environment
• Domain Eukarya
Plants
• Structure
– Multicellular
– Cells contain a cell wall
– Complex organisms; contain organ systems
• Energy
– Autotrophy
– Photosynthetic
• Domain Eukarya
Animals
• Structure
– Multicellular
– Complex organisms, contain organ systems
• Energy
– Heterotrophy
– Herbivores, carnivores, and omnivores
• Domain Eukarya