•Classification
•Taxonomy
•Aristotle
•Linnaeus
•Kingdom
•Phylum
•Class
•Order
•Family
•Genus
•Species
•Common name
•Scientific
name
•Binomial
nomenclature
•Phylogeny
•Systematics
Hypothesis
•Cladistics
•Derived
character
•Cladogram
•Dichotomous
Key
Diversity of Life
• There are over 2.5 million
identified species
• Some biologists believe there may
be 20 million more that have not
been discovered
• How can you possibly keep track of
all of these?
Why do we need to classify?
• Imagine a store…..how do you know
where to find the milk or the cereal? Are
they in the same aisle? How is the store
“organized”? Are all stores similar?
• Imagine your computer or mp3
player…..are all of your songs and files in
a single folder or do you have them
grouped in some way?
When you have a lot of information, it is best to
organize and group items so that you can find
them easier or easily see their relationship to
other items
….this is why we CLASSIFY
Even websites
must organize their
products
Scientists also need a way to
*NAME* organisms
• The “common names” used by
people can sometimes be misleading or
confusing
• In order to communicate effectively,
biologists need a CONSISTENT naming
protocol.
*Check out these slides of confusing
names…..
Photo Credits
Sea Lion: Bill Lim
Ant Lion: Amphioxus
Lion: law_keven
Sea Lion?
Antlion?
Lion?
Which one of these
is NOT actually a
bear?
Photo Credits
Panda: Chi King
Koala: Belgianchocolate
Black Bear: SparkyLeigh
Consider this………..
• Are all “Grey Wolves”
gray?
• Are all “Black Bears”
black?
• Which is more
venomous – a water
moccasin or a
cottonmouth?
Grey wolves can be white, black and any shade of gray.
Black bears can also be brown or gray
A cottonmouth and a water moccasin are the same animal – the names vary
by region.
Devil Cat
Ghost Cat
Mountain Lion
Screaming Cat
Puma
Florida Panther
Cougar
•There are at least 50 common names for
the animal shown on the previous 7
slides.
•Common names vary according to
region.
•Soooo……this is why we use a scientific
name?
Linnaeus to the Rescue!
• Linnaeus, a Swedish botanist, developed a system for naming
organisms
• Binomial Nomenclature is a system that gives each
organism a two part scientific name
• For Example: Red Maple = Acer rubrum
Example: Felis concolor or F. concolor
Which is the genus? The species?
Classifying Organisms
• Once Linnaeus had come up with a system for naming
organisms he started to group them
• Organisms were put into groups based on similar
characteristics
• These groups are called Taxa and the science of naming
and grouping is called Taxonomy
7 Layer Classification System
• Taxonomy uses a system of 7 levels of taxa
• The organisms in each Taxon become more closely related
as you move down the ladder
• The Taxons in order of most general to most specific are:
Kingdom, Phylum, Class, Order, Family, Genus Species
Categories within Kingdoms
Kingdoms are divided into groups called phyla
Phyla are subdivided into classes
Classes are subdivided into orders
Orders are subdivided into families
Families are divided into genera
Genera contain closely related species
Species is unique
Grizzly bear
Black bear
Giant panda
Red fox
KINGDOM Animalia
PHYLUM Chordata
CLASS Mammalia
ORDER Carnivora
FAMILY Ursidae
GENUS Ursus
SPECIES Ursus arctos
Abert
squirrel
Coral snake
Sea star
Understand how to identify which
species are more closely related.
Humans
Kingdom
Phylum
Class
Order
Family
Genus
Species
Animalia
Chordata
Mammalia
Primate
Hominidae
Homo
sapiens
The scientific name is
always the genus + species
Humans = Homo sapiens
Photo by atomicshark
Check for
Understanding on your
paper
Check for Understanding
A diagram that shows an evolutionary
relationship is a
________________________
A characteristic that appears only in recent
members is called a ________________
character
The study of evolutionary relationships is
called __________________________
A system to find the name of an unknown
organism is a _______________________
key
Three Domain System
Recently, scientists have added a group above
Kingdom. Three groups, called DOMAINS, contain each of
the six kingdoms.
Domain Eukarya - includes organisms composed of
eukaryotic cells (plants, animals, fungi, protists)
Domain Bacteria - includes all prokaryotic cells, Kingdom
Eubacteria
Domain Archaea - includes only "ancient" bacteria,
Archaebacteria – lives in extreme conditions
3 Domain System
The Kingdoms
• There are currently 6 kingdoms – all
organisms can be placed into one of those
6.
• Classification into a kingdom is based on
certain criteria
o
o
o
o
Number of cells – unicellular / multicellular
How it obtains energy – autotroph / heterotroph
Type of cell – prokaryote / eukaryote
Cell Wall makeup – no / yes (chitin, cellulose,
peptidoglycan)
Terms to remember
 Autotrophs
capture the light energy from
sunlight and convert it to chemical energy
they use for food.
 Heterotrophs must get energy by eating
autotrophs or other heterotrophs.
 Decomposers, aka saprobes, are heterotrophs
that recycle dead organisms by breaking them
down.
Kingdom
Animalia
Photo by Tambako the Jaguar
• Multicellular
• Heterotrophic (must
consume food)
• Eukaryotic (cells have
a nucleus)
• Examples: birds,
insects, worms,
mammals, reptiles,
humans
Photo by Eduardo Amorim
Kingdom Plantae
•Multicellular
•Autotrophic (can make own food;
photosynthesis)
•Eukaryotic (cells have nucleus)
•Cellulose Cell Wall
Photo by hira3
Kingdom Fungae
•
•
•
•
Multicellular (most)
Heterotrophic (mainly decomposers)
Eukaryotic
Chitin Cell Wall
Photos by nutmeg66
Kingdom Protista
• Most are unicellular
• Can be hetertrophic or
autotrophic
• Most live in the water
• Eukaryotes (all have nucleus)
• Examples: Ameba,
paramecium, euglena, algae
• Most live in water
Photo of Ameba by PROYECTO
AGUA **/** WATER PROJECT
Kingdom EuBacteria & ArcheaBacteria
• Unicellular
• Can be autotrophic or heterotrophic
• Prokaryotes (do not have a nucleus)
Eubacteria = common
bacteria (E. coli,
Salmonella)
Archaebacteria =
“ancient bacteria”, exist
in extreme environments
Kingdoms and Domains
Classification of Living Things
DOMAIN
Bacteria
Archaea
KINGDOM
Eubacteria
Archaebacteria
CELL TYPE
CELL
STRUCTURES
Protista
Fungi
Plantae
Animalia
Prokaryote
Prokaryote
Eukaryote
Eukaryote
Eukaryote
Eukaryote
Cell walls with
peptidoglycan
Cell walls without
peptidoglycan
Cell walls of
cellulose in some;
some have
chloroplasts
Cell walls of
chitin
Cell walls of
cellulose;
chloroplasts
No cell walls or
chloroplasts
Unicellular
Most unicellular;
some colonial;
Most
some multicellular multicellular;
some
Autotroph or
unicellular
heterotroph
Heterotroph
Amoeba,
Paramecium,
slime molds, giant Mushrooms,
yeasts
kelp
Multicellular
Multicellular
Autotroph
Heterotroph
Mosses, ferns,
flowering
plants
Sponges,
worms, insects,
fishes,
mammals
NUMBER OF
CELLS
Unicellular
MODE OF
NUTRITION
Autotroph or
heterotroph
EXAMPLES
Eukarya
Streptococcus,
Escherichia coli
Autotroph or
heterotroph
Methanogens,
halophiles
Eukaryotic Cell
Prokaryotic Cell
The Dichotomous Key
• A key is a device for easily and quickly
identifying an unknown organism.
• The dichotomous key is the most widely used
type in biological sciences.
• The user is presented with a sequence of
choices between two statements, couplets,
based on characteristics of the organism. By
always making the correct choice, the name of
the organism will be revealed.
1. Has green colored body ......go to 2
Has purple colored body ..... go to 4
2. Has 4 legs .....go to 3
Has 8 legs .......... Deerus octagis
3. Has a tail ........ Deerus pestis
Does not have a tail ..... Deerus magnus
4. Has a pointy hump ...... Deerus humpis
Does not have a pointy hump.....go to 5
5. Has ears .........Deerus purplinis
Does not have ears ......Deerus deafus
Practice Questions
Practice Questions
Knowledge of which of these
is most important in
classifying this new organism
into a kingdom?
F The color of light absorbed by
the organism
G The type of radiation emitted
H The use of photosynthesis
J The color of the organism
Characteristics of a Newly Discovered
Organism
• Absorbs blue light
• Emits infrared radiation
• Contains RNA in nucleus
• Appears as a red organism
in full daylight
• Can obtain nutrition
through photosynthesis
Practice Questions
Knowledge of which of these
is most important in
classifying this new organism
into a kingdom?
F The color of light absorbed by
the organism
G The type of radiation emitted
H The use of photosynthesis
J The color of the organism
Characteristics of a Newly Discovered
Organism
• Absorbs blue light
• Emits infrared radiation
• Contains RNA in nucleus
• Appears as a red organism
in full daylight
• Can obtain nutrition
through photosynthesis
Key phrase
Practice Questions
Knowledge of which of these
is most important in
classifying this new organism
into a kingdom?
F The color of light absorbed by
the organism
G The type of radiation emitted
H The use of photosynthesis
J The color of the organism
Strategy: Think about ways biologist
classify info: How they get energy, cell
structure, etc.
Characteristics of a Newly Discovered
Organism
• Absorbs blue light
• Emits infrared radiation
• Contains RNA in nucleus
• Appears as a red organism
in full daylight
• Can obtain nutrition
through photosynthesis
Key phrase
Practice Questions
Knowledge of which of these
is most important in
classifying this new organism
into a kingdom?
F The color of light absorbed by
the organism
G The type of radiation emitted
H The use of photosynthesis
J The color of the organism
Characteristics of a Newly Discovered
Organism
• Absorbs blue light
• Emits infrared radiation
• Contains RNA in nucleus
• Appears as a red organism
in full daylight
• Can obtain nutrition
through photosynthesis
Taxonomy uses characteristics of the organism, such as how
the organism obtains energy, in classifying.