BIOLOGY DIVERSITY IN LIVING ORGANISMS

Biodiversity and its Classification

Biodiversity

The variety in living organisms existing on the Earth is called biodiversity.

The term biodiversity was coined by Walter G. Rosen in 1896.
India is one of the 12 mega biodiversity countries in the world. It has a rich and a diverse biodiversity
with several habitats, ranging from tropical rainforests to deserts to alpine vegetation.

Importance of Biodiversity
Biodiversity is important for the survival of all living beings.
Every living organism depends on other organisms for its basic necessity of food.
All living creatures are supported by the interactions among organisms and their immediate
environment.
A biologically diverse natural environment provides human beings with their necessities of life and
forms the basis of the economy.
It is very important to conserve the vast biodiversity which exists on this planet not only because it
provides services to humans but also because it helps us in many ways such as pollination, nutrient
cycling and regulation of the atmosphere and climate.

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Basis of Classification

The system of sorting living organisms into various groups based on their characteristic similarities
and differences is called classification.
To make relevant groups to study various forms, it is important to decide which characteristics decide
more fundamental differences. This creates main broad groups of organisms.
Within these groups, smaller sub-groups are decided by less important characteristics. This is called
hierarchy of characteristics.
The similarities, differences and the variety among living organisms can be used as criteria for their
classification.

Importance of Classification
Classification allows us to understand diversity better.
It helps in the identification of living organisms as well as in understanding the diversity of living
organisms.
Classification helps us to learn about different kinds of plants and animals, their features, similarities
and differences.
It enables us to understand how complex organisms evolve from simpler organisms.
To understand and study the features, similarities and differences between different living organisms,
they are grouped under different categories.
Classification is a tool which helps us to deal with a great diversity of living forms.
It is essential to understand the inter-relationships among the different groups of organisms.
Classification forms a base for the development of other biological sciences.

Classification and Evolution

The principles of classification help us to trace the evolutionary relationships of the species around us.
The similarities among the organisms allow us to group them into broad groups. The grouping can be
done based on a certain set of characteristics.

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Characteristics are details of the appearance or behaviour, a particular form or a function of an

organism.
As time passed, certain characteristics began to influence the body design of organisms. When a new
body design came into existence, changes began to occur in it which in turn brought about new
changes.
The characteristics which came into existence earlier are likely to be more primitive than those which
arose later.
Most of the organisms have arisen by the accumulation of changes in their body design. The
organisms which possess these favourable changes survive better in the long run.
In 1859, Charles Darwin first described this concept of evolution in his book The Origin of Species.
Certain groups of organisms have ancient body designs and are referred to as primitive or lower
organisms. Some organisms have acquired their body designs relatively recently and are called
advanced or higher organisms.
The terms primitive and advanced do not clearly reflect the evolution of organisms, and hence, we
often refer to them as older and younger organisms, respectively.
There is a strong possibility that complexity within the organisms increases with an increase in the
evolutionary time. Hence, we can say that older organisms are relatively simpler, while younger
organisms are more complex.
We can build up small groups of species with recent common ancestors, then super groups of these
groups with more distant common ancestors and so on. At some point in tracing back the history of the
Earth, we find that non-living materials must have given rise to life on the Earth.

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Category Levels of Diversity

•A species is a group of organisms of a particular kind whose members can

interbreed among themselves to produce fertile young ones. It is the basic unit of
Species classification.

•The species which are structurally similar or related constitute the next higher
Genus category called a genus.

•A group of genera with certain common characteristics form a family.

Family

•A group of related families constitutes an order.

Order

•The orders which share some common characteristics together constitute a class.
Class

•A phylum is the largest division in the classification of plants and animals. The
Phylum classes which share common features constitute a phylum.

•The related phyla which share some common features form a kingdom.
Kingdom

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Example → Modern House cat Tiger Dog Mango

Grouping man
↓

Kingdom Animalia Animalia Animalia Animalia Plantae

Phylum Chordata Chordata Chordata Chordata Spermatophyta

(Vertebrata) (Vertebrata) (Vertebrata) (Vertebrata)
Class Mammalia Mammalia Mammalia Mammalia Angiospermae

Order Primates Carnivora Carnivora Carnivora Sapindales

Family Hominidae Felidae Felidae Canidae Anacardiaceae
Genus Homo Felis Panthera Canis Mangifera

Species sapiens domesticus tigris familiaris indica

A Sample of Classification of Living Beings

Artificial and Natural System of Classification

Classified animals Categorised all Classified,

on the basis of known plants on described and
their nature and the basis of their named plants,
habitat form, life-span animals and
and habitat minerals
Grouped plants Classification
into four scheme is based
categories: trees, on the sexual
shrubs, characters of
undershrubs and living organisms
herbs

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