Taxonomy and

Classification
 Why Classify
• Biologists want to better understand
organisms so they organize them.
• One tool that they use to do this is
classification—the grouping of objects or
information based on similarities.
• Taxonomy is the branch of biology that groups
and names organisms based on studies of their
different characteristics.
• Biologists who study taxonomy are called
taxonomists.
 Keeping track of species
• The Greek philosopher Aristotle (384-322 B.C.)
developed the first widely accepted system of
biological classification.
• He classified all the organisms he knew into two
groups: plants and animals.
• >1 million species named, up to 15 million more.
• Taxonomy is not new; cultures have been
naming plants and animals around them for
1000’s of years.
• It’s practical to have names.
1. Aristotle classified organisms as either
plants (plantae) or animals (animalia)

But is everything a plant or an animal?

Scientists need to organize over 2 million
organisms!
Scientists need to organize over 2 million
organisms!
 Which one is easier?
“Watch out—there’s a bear behind that rock!

OR

“Watch out--there is a large, furry, four-legged

creature with long claws, a big mouth set
in a short, stout muzzle, attached to a
round head containing small eyes and
short triangular ears behind that rock!”
 Who devised a system
for classification?
• Carolus Linneaus (1707 -1778)
a swedish naturalist.
• Devised a two part naming
system known as binomial
nomenclature.
2. Carolus Linneaus
developed the
hierarchical
system, which
classifies in levels
based on physical
similarities
 Binomial Nomenclature
• Standard two-part system for naming things.
• In this system, the first word identifies the
genus of the organism.
• A genus (genera-plural) consists of a group of
similar species.
• The second word, which sometimes describes
a characteristic of the organism, is called the
specific epithet.
Linnaeus described and named > 6,000 animals
and >4,000 plants using Latin
Scientific name does not replace, but instead
further defines common name
Scientific and common names
• Taxonomists are required to use Latin
because the language is no longer used in
conversation and, therefore, does not change.
• Scientific names should be italicized in print
and underlined when handwritten.
• The first letter of the genus name is
uppercase, but the first letter of the specific
epithet is lowercase.

Passer domesticus
• Even though the genus and species
are thorough sometimes more is
needed.

• Varities are splits of species. Example

peaches & nectarines are both from a
peach tree.
• Subspecies are variations of species
that occur in different regions.
May tell you where it was first discovered:
– Didelphis virginiana “2 wombs from Virginia”
– Sylvilagus floridanus “wood-hare of Florida”
Or who discovered it:
– Lepus townsendii “hare” discovered by
“Townsend”
 Modern Classification
• Expanding on Linnaeus’s work, today’s
taxonomists try to identify the underlying
evolutionary relationships of organisms and
use the information gathered as a basis for
classification.
• Grouping organisms on the basis of their
evolutionary relationships makes it easier to
understand biological diversity.
• Taxonomists group similar organisms, both
living and extinct. Classification provides a
framework in which to study the relationships
among living and extinct species.
 How Living Things Are Classified
• In any classification system, items are
categorized, making them easier to find and
discuss.
• Although biologists group organisms, they
subdivide the groups on the basis of more
specific criteria.
• A group of organisms is called a taxon (plural,
taxa).
• Organisms are ranked in taxa that range from
having very broad characteristics to very specific
ones.
• The broader a taxon, the more general its
characteristics, and the more species it contains.
 Taxonomic Hierarchy
Mnemonic
Kingdom kings
Phylum play
Class cards
Order on
Family fine
Genus green
Specific epithet (species) sofas
Taxonomic rankings
• The smallest taxon is species. Organisms
that look alike and successfully interbreed
belong to the same species.
• The next largest taxon is a genus—a group of
similar species that have similar features and
are closely related.
Taxonomic rankings
• Compare the appearance of a lynx, Lynx rufus,
a bobcat, Lynx canadensis, and a mountain
lion, Panthera concolor.

Lynx Mountain
Bobcat lion
 Taxonomic goals
Place organisms into logical categories
– system must be capable of being used for
information retrieval, so anyone can
properly identify any organism

Place organisms into categories that

show ancestor-descendant
relationships
 Taxonomic hierarchy
Kingdom (Animalia)
Phylum (Chordata)
Class (Mammalia)
Order (Carnivora)
Family (Canidae)
Genus (Canis)
Specific epithet (species) (familiaris)

Scientific name: Canis familiaris

 Problems with Classification
What kinds of problems could scientists run
into if they were just grouping organisms by
similar physical characteristics?
 Problems with Classification
What kinds of problems could scientists run
into if they were just grouping organisms by
similar physical characteristics?

Turn and
Talk
 Modern Classification
Biologists now group organisms according
to their evolutionary relationships
Scientists use the following criteria to classify
organisms:
• Structural similarities: similar fossils or
anatomy
• Biochemical analysis: DNA, proteins and amino
acids (still the best)
• Embryology: similar embryos
Six Kingdom
System
 Kingdom Archaebacteria
• Unicellular, Prokaryote
• Either autotroph or
heterotroph
• Cell walls made of
peptidoglycan
• Reproduces by binary
fission
• Lives in Harsh
environments: salty lakes,
hot springs, anaerobic
environments
• AKA–Kingdom Moneran
Kingdom Eubacteria
• Unicellular, prokaryote
• Either autotroph or
heterotroph
• Cell walls made of
peptidoglycan
• Reproduces by binary
fission
• Includes common bacteria:
tooth decay, yogurt
production, food poisoning
• AKA–Kingdom Moneran
 Kingdom Protista
• Unicellular or multicellular
• Eukaryotic
• Cell walls made of varying
materials
• Autotroph or heterotroph
• About 50,000 species
• Reproduces-asexually
• Examples include:
– Euglena
– Amoeba
Kingdom Fungi
• Unicellular or multicellular
• Eukaryotic
• Heterotrophic
• Cells walls made of chitin.
• Reproduces - asexually
• 100,000 species
• Including: toadstools,
mushrooms, puffballs,
rusts or smut
 Kingdom Plantae
• Multicellular
• Eukaryotic
• Autotrophic
• Can reproduce both
ways.
• Cell walls made of
cellulose.
• All but a few are land
dwellers. 350,000
species
• Including:mosses, ferns,
conifers, flower plants
Kingdom Animalia
• Multicellular
• Eukaryotic
• Heterotrophic
• No cell walls
• Reproduces
sexually by meiosis.
• All animals have
some type of
symmetry
 Binomial Nomenclature

• Developed by Carolus Linnaeus

• Two-name system
• Each organism has a genus and
a species name
• First name (genus); second
name (species)
What rules are used to write
scientific names?
• An organism’s genus is always written
first; the organism’s species is always
written second
• The genus is capitalized; the species
is written in lower case
• Scientific names of organisms are
always italicized or underlined
 Using the Classification System
Field guides help identify organisms.
-they highlight differences between similar
organisms (like trees)

Taxonomic Key (Dichotomous Key)

-paired statements that describe the physical
characteristics of different organisms
 Taxonomic Key

• 1a Fruits occur singly ....................................................... Go to 3

• 1b Fruits occur in clusters of two or more ......................... Go to 2
• 2a Fruits are round ....................................................... Grapes
• 2b Fruits are elongate ................................................... Bananas
• 3a Thick skin that separates easily from flesh .............Oranges
• 3b Thin skin that adheres to flesh .............................. Go to 4
• 4a More than one seed per fruit ............................ Apples
• 4b One seed per fruit ............................................ Go to 5
• 5a Skin covered with velvety hairs .................... Peaches
• 5b Skin smooth, without hairs ........................... Plums

What steps would you use to identify a peach?

 Dichotomous Key
• A system for identifying organisms
that offers two, and only two
alternatives at each choice.
What is this crazy bug????
 Given this taxonomic key,
can you figure it out???
1a. Has 8 legs Go to Step 2.
1b. Has more than 8 legs Go to Step 3.
2a. Has one oval-shaped body region Go to Step 4.
2b. Has two body regions Go to Step 5.
3a. As one pair of legs on each body Centipede
segment
3b. Has two pairs of legs on each body Millipede
segment
4a. Is less than 1 millimeter long Mite
4b. Is more than 1 millimeter long Tick
5a. Has clawlike pincers Go to Step 6.
5b. Has no clawlike pincers Spider
6a. Has a long tail with a stinger Scorpion
6b. Has no tail or stinger Pseudoscorpion
 Basic Rules for Constructing
Dichotomous Keys
• All parts of the key should be dichotomous. Never use
trichotomies.
• Always give contrasting, alternative characteristics in
each couplet. Use clear-cut opposites.
• Taxonomic names should never be used in the
characteristic description.
• Use characteristics that are convenient and obvious
features of the organism.
• Each step involves making choices between 2
characteristics. The characteristics are grouped 1a
and 1b, 2a and 2b and so forth.
Suppose you have four insects a
ladybug, a housefly, a dragonfly
and a grasshopper.
 After studying the insects, what
characteristics could you use to start
separating the four insects??

• wing covering
• body shape
• where the wings point towards
To begin the key, you could start separating
the four insects based on wing covering -
"wings covered by exoskeleton" vs. "wings
not covered by exoskeleton."

The first step in the key will be organized

the following way:
CHARACTERISTIC
• 1 a. wings covered by an exoskeleton
• 1 b. wings not covered by an exoskeleton
 Next, the statements need to lead the
observer to the next step to narrow the
identification further:
CHARACTERISTIC GO TO/ IDENTIFY
• 1 a. wings covered by an exoskeleton ……go to step 2
• 1 b. wings not covered by an exoskeleton ….go to step 3
 Step 2 needs to consist of a pair of
statements that will allow for the
identification of the ladybug and the
grasshopper:

• 2 a. body has a round shape …………ladybug

• 2 b. body has an elongated shape …..grasshopper
 Step 3 needs to consist of a pair of
statements that will allow for the
identification of the housefly and
dragonfly:

• 3 a. wings point out from the side of the body …….dragonfly

• 3 b. wings point to the posterior of the body ……….housefly
 organisms to be identified
and it only took three steps.
There should be one less
step than the total number of
organisms to be identified in
your dichotomous key.
 When using a key, keep the
following in mind:
• Always read both choices, even if the first seems to be the logical
one at first.
• Be sure you understand the meaning of the terms involved. Do
Not Guess.
• Since living things are always somewhat variable, do not base
your conclusion on a single observation. Study several specimens
to be sure your specimen is typical.
• If the choice is not clear, for whatever reason, try both divisions. If
you end up with two possible answers, read descriptions of the
two choices to help you decide.
• Having arrived at an answer in a key, do not accept this as
absolutely reliable. Check a description of the organism to see if it
agrees with the unknown specimen. If not, an error has been
• Made somewhere, either in the key or in its use. The ultimate
check of identifications is a comparison of the unknown with an
authentically named "Type Specimen".