Chapter 2

Taxonomy
*

Devil Cat

Ghost Cat

Florida Panther

Cougar

Domain:
Kingdom:

Eukaryota
Plantae

Do you think all the organisms shown

above are the same?
With so many organisms exist in the
world, how should we manage them?
What is the first step to manage them?

iNtroduction
Classification
organizing organisms into group based
on their similarities, which reflect
historical relationships among ancestry

Biological Diversity /
Biodiversity
the variety of living organisms live in
particular area or region
also means the number or abundance
of different species living within any
particular region
Scientist sometimes refer to the
biodiversity of an ecosystem
Eg: tropical rainforest, sea..

 The scientific study of the diversity

of organisms and their evolutionary
relationship is called systematics
To classify species reflecting their
evolutionary relationship based on
shared characteristic
Important aspect of systematic is
taxonomy

Taxonomy
branch of biology dealing with the
identification, naming and
classifying the diverse form of life
ordered division of organisms into
categories based on a set of
characteristics used to assess
similarities and differences

 Modern:
Use genetics to study
taxonomy, classification

Earlier Era:
Use physical
characteristics
though classification by
Linnaeus was only based
on resemblances, many
features of his system stay
useful
The systems are:
Binomial system of
nomenclature (or binomial
designations for species )
Hierarchical classification

The binomial system

Developed by Carolus Linnaeus
Linnaeus Objective:
For scientists who speak and
write in different languages
could communicate clearly
Binomial : because it has 2 parts
Eg: Panthera tigris (tiger) and
Panthera Leo (lion)
Panthera is a genus, a
classification category that can
include many species
The second word that is specific
epithet, refers to one species

 Linnaeus also rationalized the

nomenclature by:
Using the same name for both sexes
Using the same name for adults and
juveniles
Used Latin language

Latin was used because it is the

universal and well known language by
most scholar at that time
Eg: Man (English)

Spanish : Hombre
German : Herr
Chinese : Ren
French : Masculan
Latin : Homo

If a scientist refers today to Homo, all

scientists know what organism/taxon he
or she means.

Confusion in Using Different Languages

for Names

Latin Names are Understood by all

Taxonomists

Hierarchical classification
based on the idea that :
the species was the smallest unit
each species or taxon nested within a
higher category
these groups become increasingly
inclusive as they become larger, going
from species to kingdom or domain
the taxa are dynamic, changing as our
knowledge of organisms and
evolutionary relationships change.

Each is more general than

the one below:

Kingdom
Phylum
Class
Order
Family
Genus

Species
Becomes more specific as one
moves down the taxonomic
ladder
Here, domestic cat

Classification hierarchy of organisms

DOMAIN are divided into kingdom
Broadest taxon

KINGDOM are divided into phyla

PHYLA are divide into class
Organisms classify
CLASS
under the hierarchy are
ORDER
based on similarities.
FAMILIES
GENERA contain closely related species
SPECIES
Most Specific

Example
Diagram

Hierarchy
Dumb
King
Phillip
Came
Over
For
Gearbox
Soup

Kingdom

Eumycota

Kingdom: Plantae

Phylum

Basidiomycota

Phylum:

Magnoliophyta

Class

Holobasidiomycetes

Class:

Magnoliopsida

Order

Agaricales
Order:

Malvales

Family

Cortinariaceae

Genus

Cortinarius

Family:

Malvaceae

Species

Cortinarius archeri

Genus:

Hibiscus

Species

Hibiscus syriacus

 2 key characteristics of taxa:

Members of lower
level taxa are more
similar to each other
than are members of
higher level taxa
Members of different
genus in the same
Kingdom Animalia, eg
Equus burchelli (zebra)
and Equus caballus
(domestic horse), are
more similar than
members of different
Class, eg Mammals and
Birds

Equus
burchelli

Equus
caballus

 2 key characteristics of taxa:

Members of specific taxa are

more similar to each other
than any members of
different specific taxa found
at the same hierarchical
level
Members among the same
genus, eg Canis Dingo (Dingo)
and Canis latrans (Coyote)
more resembles each other
than with Sus scrofa (Wild
boar) , eventhough there are in
the same Kingdom, but they
are from different genus.

Canis latrans

Canis dingo

Sus scrofa

Example of Hierarchical Classification

Human classification
&
the characteristics

Classification Schemes Reflect Scientific

Knowledge and Technology
Originally all organisms classified as plants or
animals
Introduction of microscope forced biologists to
recognize unicellular organisms: Protists (Haekel)
became a third kingdom this now unicellular
eukaryotes
Early 20th Century: the Prokaryotes proposed for all
non-nucleated unicells (Chatton)

Classification system
1700s Carolus
Linnaeus classified
organisms into 2
large group:
-Plantae
-Animalia

Organisms were placed

into these kingdoms
1969 Robert Whittaker based on :
proposed 5
Kingdoms:
- Plantae
-Animalia
-Fungi
-Protista
-Monera

Type
of
(prokaryotic
eukaryotic)
Levels
organization
(unicellular
multicellular)

cell
or
of
or

Five-kingdom system
Whittaker indicate that plants, animals
and fungi are all multicelular eukaryotes,
but each has its own mode of nutrition,
such as:
plants are autotrophic
(photosynthesis)
animals are heterotrophic (ingestion)
fungi are heterotrophic saprotrophs.
Monera and protista are unicellular.

Three-domain system
3 domains are Archaea, Bacteria and
Eukarya
Bacteria and Archaea include prokaryotic
unicellular organisms that reproduce
asexually
Eukarya includes unicellular to
multicellular organisms whose cells have a
membrane-bounded nucleus. Most of them
involve in sexual reproduction with various
types of life cycles.

The Importance of
Biodiversity
Quality of life is dependent upon tightly
interwoven worldwide web of life
Humans (for example) depend upon
Composition of atmosphere
Fisheries, which are critical food sources
Many pharmaceuticals are dependent upon living
systems (many from rain forests)
Many, many other resources taken for granted

Biodiversity currently challenged by human

impact at a multitude of levels

 At present :
- identified species : 1.5 million
280,000 plants

50,000
vertebrates

Over 750,000
insects

Example:
a) Ursus horribilis / Ursus horribilis : grizzly bear
b) Panthera tigris / Panthera tigris : tiger
c) Homo sapiens / Homo sapiens : human

Protist
Paramecium

 1969: R.H. Whittaker proposed 5-kingdom scheme

by adding the kingdom Fungi
Late 1970s, Woese proposed Archaebacteria
(ancient bacterial types) and Eubacteria be two
major divisions of the prokaryotes, making a 6kingdom scheme

The Kingdom of Life

A two-kingdom system (2-kingdom) Linnaeus
A five-kingdom (5-kingdom) Whittaker
A three-domain system (3-domain) Woese

Early Classification Systems for Living

Things
Plant Kingdom
Grasses
Herbs

Animal Kingdom
Fish
Creeping creatures
Fowl

Trees
Bacteria
- Rigid cell wall, chloroplast,
unable to move

Beasts
Cattle
Unicellular microorganism
- move and ingest food

Aristotlea
400 BC
Attempted a classification

system for over 500

species of animals
Categorized animals as air
dwellers, land dwellers,
and water dwellers
Classified the dolphin as a
land dweller
Keen observer of nature

Theophrastus

Philosopher
Grouped more than 500

species of plants according to

stem structure.

Carolus Linnaeus
Founder of Modern Taxonomy
1737 published system of taxonomy entitled

Systema Naturae
distinguished two kingdoms of living
things: Plant and Animal kingdoms
Instituted binomial nomenclature
Arranged related genera into orders; orders into
classes
his classification system is still used today;
however, we use a 5 kingdom system

Five-kingdom of life
Late 1960s, schemes with more than twokingdoms accepted.
Many biologist recognized five-kingdom
- Monera, Protista, Plantae, Fungi and Animalia
Highlighted two fundamental different types of
cells prokaryote and eukaryote

3 domain
The classification Domain is above
kingdoms.
Archaea
Eubacteria
Eukarya

 6 kingdoms are still maintained by most

biologists:

Archaebacteria
Eubacteria
Protista
Fungi
Plantae
Animalia

3 Domain
The domain is the most inclusive taxonomic category;
larger than a kingdom
The three domains are:
Domain Archaea
Includes newly discovered cell types
Contains 1 kingdom the Archaebacteria

 Domain Bacteria
Includes other members of old kingdom Monera
Has 1 kingdom the Eubacteria
Domain Eukarya
Includes all kingdoms composed of organisms made up of
eukaryotic cells
Protista
Fungi
Animalia
Plantae

Cladogram / phylogenetic tree of Six

Kingdoms and Three Domains
DOMAIN
ARCHAEA
DOMAIN
EUKARYA

Kingdoms
DOMAIN
BACTERIA

Eubacteria
Archaebacteria
Protista
Plantae
Fungi
Animalia

Go to
Section:

Key Characteristics of Kingdoms and

Domains
Classification of Living Things

DOMAIN
KINGDOM
CELL TYPE
CELL
STRUCTURE
S

NUMBER OF
CELLS

Bacteria

Eukarya

Archaea

Eubacteria Archaebacte Protista

ria
Eukaryote
Prokaryote
Prokaryote Cell walls of
cellulose in

Cell walls
some; some
Cell walls
with
have
without
peptidoglyca
chloroplasts
peptidoglycan
n

Unicellular
Unicellular

Most
unicellular;
some
colonial;
some
multicellular

Autotroph or Autotroph or
MODE OF
heterotroph
heterotroph
Autotroph
or
NUTRITION
Amoeba,
heterotroph

Fungi

Animalia

Eukaryote

Eukaryote

Eukaryote

Cell walls of
chitin

Cell walls
of
cellulose;
chloroplas
ts

No cell walls
or
chloroplasts

Most
multicellula
r; some
unicellular

Multicellular
Multicellul
ar

Heterotroph

Mushrooms,
Paramecium, yeasts

EXAMPLES Streptococcu Methanogens, slime molds,

giant kelp
halophiles
s,

Plantae

Heterotroph

Autotroph
Mosses,

Sponges,
worms,
insects,
fishes,
mammals