Taxonomy

Taxonomy

Why Classify?

Organizes living things into groupsGives us a universal way to name organismsHelps in identifying new species or known

speciesShows how closely organisms are relatedPrevents misconceptions: ex: jellyfish and

starfish are not actually fish.

What is Taxonomy?

Taxonomy is the study of classifying organisms.

Taxonomy: names and groups organisms according to their characteristics and evolutionary history

History of TaxonomyAristotle was the first person to

classify organisms in writing. He divided things into:

Animals: Lived in air, water or on landPlants: differentiated by stems

Early classification caused problems:They used common names which are

different around the worldAlso used long names with descriptive

terms called polynomial names.

History Cont.

In the 1700’s in Swedish scientist Carolus Linnaeus fixed these problems.

Linnaeus created binomial nomenclature which is still used today.

Binomial Nomenclature means two names Every Organism is given a scientific name based on

its Genus and Species

But what are genus and species? They are each 1 part of the 8 levels of

classification.

8 Levels of Classification1. Domain

2. Kingdom3. Phylum 4. Class5. Order6. Family7. Genus8. SpeciesDignified Kings Play Chess on Fuzzy Green

SofasSpecies is the smallest and most specific level

Domain is the largest and least specific level

*These levels of classification are based on an organisms evolutionary chain how it has evolved over time

**Two organisms with the same genus are more closely related than those with the same kingdom

NamingThe name of an organism depends on its

levels of classification. Domain is often ignored.

Names are in Latin- it is universal in all languages

Ex: HumansBrain Pop

Writing Names

Scientific Names are always written as: Genus species

The first letter of Genus is always CAPITALIZED

species is written in all lowercase letters

The entire name is either italicized or underlined

Ex: Human Name Homo sapien or Homo sapien

More Examples

Euclea delphiniiCommon Name: spiny oak slug

Odobenus rosmarusCommon Name: Walrus

The Three Domains

1. Eubacteria- these are seen as spheres rods and spirals (most bacteria)—no nucleus

2. Archaebacteria- found in harsh environments. Thought to be the first organisms on earth.—no nucleus

3. Eukarya- made up of:1. Protists2. Plants3. Fungi4. Animals

Domains are divided into Six Kingdoms

1. Eubacteria- same as domain– have no nucleus

2. Archaebacteria- same as domain—have no nucleus

3. Protista- have a nucleus4. Plantae—photosynthesize, have cell wall5. Fungi—take up nutrients from dead

organisms6. Animalia—multi-cellular, eat food to get

nutrients Brain Pop