Transcript Classification of Living Things - Lebanon City Schools

Classification of
Living Things
Please write down everything in
THIS COLOR
Why do scientists classify?
• Biologists use classification to
organize living things into groups
so that the organisms are easier
to study.
• Classification: the process of
grouping things based on their
similarities.
• Taxonomy: the scientific study of
how living things are classified.
The classification system of
Linnaeus
• 1750s
• Swedish scientist named Carolus
Linnaeus created a naming
system for organisms.
• Binomial nomenclature: the
naming system for organisms in
which each organism is given a
two-part name—a genus name
and a species name.
Genus and Species
• Genus: a classification grouping
that consists of a number of
similar, closely related species.
The first part of an organism’s
scientific name.
• Species: A group of similar
organisms that can mate and
produce fertile offspring. The
second part of an organism’s
scientific name.
For example…genus
• Pumas, ocelots, and
housecats are all classified
in the genus Felis. They all
share characteristics such
as sharp, retractable claws
and behaviors such as
hunting other animals.
…and species.
• The species name sets one
species in a genus apart from
another.
• The species name often describes
a distinctive feature of an
organism—where it lives or its
color.
– Puma: Felis concolor (same color)
– Ocelot: Felis pardalis (spotted)
– House cat: Felis domesticus (of the
house)
Specifics
• These words are in Latin.
– Latin was the language that
scientists communicated in during
that time.
• The entire scientific name is
written in italics.
• The genus is capitalized and the
species begins with a small letter.
7 levels of classification
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KINGDOM
PHYLUM
CLASS
ORDER
FAMILY
GENUS
SPECIES
If you can, think of a way to
remember these—King Phillip
Comes Over For Good Spaghetti
Here is the classification of what we
know as a leopard
Kingdoms
• A kingdom is the broadest level of
organization. There are 6 main
kingdoms:
– Animals
– Plants
– Fungi
– Protists
– Eubacteria
– Archaebacteria
Phyla
• Within a kingdom there are phyla.
– One of the most important phyla
classifications is in the animal
kingdom.
– Animals with backbones are placed
in the phylum Chordata.
– Animals without backbones are
placed in many different phyla
Scientists have divided the Animal
Kingdom into two main groups:
vertebrates
(animals with
a backbone)
and
invertebrates
(animals
without a
backbone)
Taxonomic or dichotomous key
• Taxonomic key: a series of paired
statements that describe the
physical characteristics of
different organisms.
• It is also called a dichotomous key
(“di” meaning “two”) because at
each level on the key there are two
choices to identify the organism.
Try using a dichotomous key!
• http://students.ed.qut.edu.au/n236
4379/MDB377/DichotomousKey.ht
ml
• Use this link to work together as a
class to classify different animals.