Unit A Continuity of Life
Chapter 1 Classifying Organisms
Lesson 1 Kingdoms of Living Things
Classify- to sort objects into groups according to their
properties.
Kingdom- the largest category that contains six
subgroups:
Archaebacteria, Eubacteria, Protists, Fungi, Plants,
Animals
Dichotomous key- a tool used to identify organisms
based on contrasting pairs of characteristics. For
example:
Classifying Most Living Things
Singlecelled?
YES
NO
Nucleus
in cell?
Makes it
own food?
YES
NO
NO
YES
PROTISTS
BACTERIA
Eats food?
PLANTS
NO
YES
FUNGI
ANIMALS
Bacteria
 Single-celled organisms that do not have an
nucleus
* Remember- a nucleus is the control center of
a cell
 Cannot be seen without a microscope
 Very numerous- they live almost everywhere
on Earth
 Some are good- help in our intestines to
digest food
 Some cause disease- strep throat
There are two kingdoms of bacteria:
Archaebacteria & Eubacteria
Archaebacteria- “ancient bacteria”, have lived on
Earth longer than any other organism. They can
survive in extreme conditions, such as sever heat
and no oxygen.
Eubacteria- cannot survive extreme conditions. E.
coli is an example.
Protists
 Organisms with a nucleus that have
characteristics of both plants and animals.
 Most are single-celled but some can be many
celled
Protozoa- are animal-like protists. They take
food from their environment and live wherever
there is water.
Examples: paramecium and amoebas
Algae- plant-like protists. They use energy
from the sun to make their own food. Release
oxygen and are producers in an ocean food
chain.
Fungus-like protists- they take food from
their environment and some reproduce through
spores. They can affect humans- attack
vegetables and fruit crops.
Examples: slime mold
Fungi
 Organisms with a nucleus that absorb nutrients
by decomposing, or breaking down, other
organisms
 Can be single-celled or multi-celled
 Grow fast through reproduction by spores that
are carried by the wind
 Mushrooms are an example of fungi
Lesson 2 Classifying Plants
The Plant Kingdom
Plants are:




Multicellular organisms (many cells)
Have tissues and organs
Cells have cell walls
Have chloroplasts, that use the Sun’s energy to
make their own food
Two ways to classify plants:
Nonvascular and vascular
Nonvascular-do not have tube like tissues to
transport water. They absorb it like a sponge
soaks up liquid. They cannot live far from a water
source.
Examples: mosses and liverworts
Vascular- have tissues that act like tubes to
transport water and nutrients to parts of the plant.
They can live far from a water source and in dry
climates.
Examples: trees and ferns
Vascular seedless plants: Ferns
 Have roots, stems and leaves
 Make spores to reproduce
Vascular seed plants: Gymnosperms




Make seeds but don’t make flowers and fruits
Produce pollen
Seeds in cones or hard berries
Four Main groups: conifers, cycads, ginkgos
and gnetophytes.
 Conifers are pine trees, cypress, junipers etc.
They are evergreens, which mean they keep
their leaves all year long.
Vascular seed plants: Angiosperms

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
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Make flowers and seeds
Fruit protect the fertilized seeds
Produce pollen like gymnosperms
seeds but don’t make flowers and fruits
Monocots have one seed leaf
Dicots have two seed leaves
Plant adaptations
Adaptation- any part or characteristic that helps a
species survive or reproduce.
 Needle-like leaves with a wax coating help keep
water in pine trees
 Trees shed leaves in autumn
 Cactus plants have stems that hold water and a wax
coating to keep it in. They also have spines which
are the cactus’ leaves.
Lesson 3 Classifying Animals
The Animal Kingdom
Animals are:



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Multicellular organisms (many cells)
Have tissues and organs
Require oxygen to breathe
Consume other organisms to get nutrients and
energy
 Most reproduce sexually (need a male and
female)
Two ways to classify animals:
Invertebrates and Vertebrates
Invertebrates-are animals without backbones.
Cnidarians- jellyfish and coral
Sponges
Mollusks- clams, oysters, snails, squids and
octopuses. They have soft bodies and most have
shells.
Arthropods- lobsters, crabs, insects and spiders.
They have an exoskeleton (a hard covering) and
bilateral symmetry, which means mirror image left
and right halves.
Worms
Echinoderms- starfish, sea urchins, and sea
cucumbers
Vertebrates- animals with a backbone.
Cold-blooded Vertebrates
 Animals that do not have a constant body
temperature. It depends on the temperature
around them.
 Amphibians- frogs and toads- need to live near
water so they can lay eggs in it. Most start out
in the water. Salamanders are also
amphibians.
 Reptiles- alligators, crocs, turtles and lizardshave tough outer skin and most lay eggs.
 Fish- have gills that allow them to take oxygen
from water and good sense of smell.
Warm-blooded Vertebrates
 Animals that maintain a constant body
temperature.
 Birds- only group that have feathers and can
live anywhere in the world.
 Mammals- have the most complex organs and
nervous systems in the animal kingdom.
They are:
 warm blooded
 have hair or fur
 are vertebrates, which means they have a backbone
 have a well-developed brain
 nurse their babies- give them milk
 Examples are: kangaroo, bears, humans, rabbits, etc.
Animal Classification
Kingdom
Phylum
Class
Order
Family
Genus
Species