Taxonomy(Naming

and Grouping)

Why is a naming system important?

Have you seen a… • Florida panther?• Cougar?• Mountain lion?• Catamount?• Puma?• They are all the

SAME animal!• Their difference

is their regional “common name”

The origins of taxonomy• Taxonomy → grouping and naming of

organisms– to understand the variety of life– to avoid confusion of regional names

• Carl (Carolus) Linnaeus (1707-1778)– developed a binomial nomenclature (2-part

name), now called the scientific name– developed a 7-level (taxon) classification

• (domain), kingdom, phylum, class, order, family, genus, species– Dreaded King Philip Came Over For Great Spaghetti– Did King Philip Come Over From Glorious Spain?– Dumb Kids Playing Chicken On Freeways Go Splat

The Three Domains(added in 1990)

(…eukaryotes)

(…”common” prokaryotes)

(…“ancient” prokaryotes)

The scientific name is taken from the genus and species

Taxonomic groups• Beginning with domain, each successive

level of classification becomes more specific

Members of a genus share more in common than members of a

family

• Organisms within the same group have more in common with one another than those within the next largest group

Kingdoms and Domains

Bacteria EukaryaArchaea

Archaea Bacteria Protista Plantae Fungi Animalia

The Three Domains

The Six Kingdoms

What is a Cladogram?• Cladogram →

diagram that shows evolutionary relationships between organisms

• Helps scientists understand how one lineage broke away from another in the course of evolution

What is a Dichotomous Key?

• Dichotomous key → classification used to identify unknown organisms

• Based on visible similarities

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