5.

1 Classification System

Taxonomy

 branch of biology
 the science of classification and it involves the naming of organisms (nomenclature)
 Carolus Linnaeus - father of taxonomy
o what part of family it came from
o scientific names (Latin)

Systematics

 is the scientific study of the diversity of organisms and their evolutionary relationships
and an important aspect of systematics is taxonomy. It is a dynamic science as it
involves constant reevaluation of data, hypotheses, and theoretical constructs. As new
data are discovered and old data are subjected to reinterpretation, the ideas change.
 the science of classification and identifying evolutionary relationship among phylogenies
 what were the things that are common from the present that can be use as an
identification from the past
Systematics is important as:
a) it can help us understand evolutionary patterns that can provide information to the origin
and spread of beneficial and harmful varieties
b) it is also useful in predicting characteristics of newly discovered species
c) new species can be classified based on specific characters that it shares with other
organisms in a particular grouping so as to record biodiversity
d) biological knowledge can be communicated efficiently among scientists.
Classification

 is an arrangement of organisms into groups on the basis of their similarities. The

grouping is done from less inclusive to more inclusive group until the organisms are
assembled into a final most inclusive group” The sequence of classification follows a
fixed system of hierarchy of categories such as species-genus-family-order and so on.
The classification process includes assigning appropriate position and rank to a new
taxon.
 involves arranging organisms into groups based on their similarities, which reflect
evolutionary relationships among lineages.
Diagrams that are use to identify its similarities:

 Dendrogram – two-dimensional diagram representing a tree of relationships, whatever

their nature
 Cladogram
 Phylogenetic tree
 Hierarchic Classification

 Carolus von Linnaeus created a hierarchical classification system using seven

taxonomic categories.
1. Kingdom 4. Order 7. Species
2. Phylum 5. Family
3. Class 6. Genus

Levels of Taxonomic
o Mnemonics - The (D) King Plays Chess On Funny Green Squares

These categories are based on shared physical characteristics, or phenotypes, within each
group. Beginning with kingdom, each successive level of classification becomes more and more
specific.
Organisms within the same order have more in common with one another than organisms within
the same class. For example, all species of bears are mammals, but not all mammals are bears.
A useful pneumonic tool to help students remember the hierarchical classification system is:
5.2 Artificial System of Classification Vs. Natural
System of Classification

Artificial System of Classification

 This classification system is based upon one or a few easily observable

characteristics.
 It places organisms into groups for purposes of convenience and economy.
 Organisms can be placed into groups according to their color, how they move,
habitat or their size.
 For example, fish can be grouped into freshwater fish, brackish water fish, and
marine fish on the basis of habitats. Biologists are also able to group flowers
according to color.
 Artificial system of classification: Advantage and Disadvantages Advantages:
Advantages:
o Makes the classification simple and easy
o Less time consuming and manage to classify with little information of one or
two characters only.
o Poorly known species can be classified easily
o Less instruments of classification are needed
o Very specific to the character of choice

Disadvantages:
o Not universally applicable
o Cannot initiate bold prediction
o Since the choice of characters are arbitrary, the exact correlation cannot be
established
 o Various unrelated taxa, which are not at all related but, similar in one respect
only, have been placed under the same Class.
o Cannot establish evolutionary relationships among taxa.

Natural System of Classification

 This taxonomic system was introduced by Jean Bauhin in 1623.

 Generally, this classification is based on many features, internal as well as
external and considers information from many branches of biology such as
anatomy, biochemical, physiological, morphology, embryology, and cytology.
 Natural system of classification: Advantage and Disadvantages Advantages:
Advantages:
o Makes the classification more inclusive
o It can be used for bold prediction of ranks and categories for newly identified
species.
o Contains more exclusive information about the taxonomic hierarchy.
o It can help to predict properties of even not-so-closely related species.
o Members of different groups are mostly similar in hereditary pattern.

Disadvantages:
o The complexity level is more than artificial
o Combursive and time consuming
o Less known plants cannot be classified through this system since their
characteristics are not fully defined.
o A single property of interest cannot be taken into consideration for
classification
 Two Classifications:
o Phenetics - about phenotypes
 homology (disregards analogous structures)
o Phylogenetics - evolutionary development
 Evolutionary descent/lineage (inclusive and complex)
5.3 Phylogenetic System of Classification

Phenetic System of Classification

 It is based on as many phenotypic similarities (similarities in appearance) as possible.

Hence, the more similarities there are between two organisms, the more likely these two
organisms belong to the same group. This is a quantitative approach.
 In this approach, computer programs are used to analyze data and group organisms
according to the number of shared characteristics,

a) Pheneticists believe that it is not important to differentiate between homology and

analogy (homoplasy) because many more similarities are due to homology than to
analogy.
b) For example, dolphins and porpoises are classified as mammals rather than as fish
because they share more similarities with mammals.
o Thus, the number of similarities that two organisms have in common reflects the
degree of homology.
o A dendrogram is a family tree based upon this type of classification (Figure
5.3.1).
 This classification involves grouping organisms based on shared characteristics which
reflect evolutionary relationships or phylogeny. This strategy is called evolutionary
classification.
 Biologists now group organisms into categories that represent lines of evolutionary
descent or phylogeny and not just physical similarities.
 When biologists compare similarities, they now consider structural, physiological,
development, behavioural and molecular traits. They look for homology in different
organisms.
 Cladogram is one of the tools used to classify organisms in this classification system.
o A cladogram is used to trace the process of evolution in a group of organisms
based on shared derived characteristics.
o The base of the cladogram represents a common ancestor for all the taxa.
o Each branch point (referred to as a node} represents the most recent common
ancestor. The node also represents a divergence or splitting of two or more new
groups from a common ancestor.
 Node P represents the common ancestor from
which amphioxus and seven vertebrate taxa
evolved.
Node Q represents the common ancestor of
the vertebrates.
Node R: the common ancestor of the jawed
vertebrates.
Node S: among the six jawed taxa, all (newt,
lizard, bear, chimpanzee and humans) but
sunfish are tetrapods
Node T: Among the five tetrapods, all (lizard,
bear, chimpanzee and humans) but newts
have amniotic eggs
Node U: bear, chimpanzee and humman have
common mammal ancestor
Node V: Human and chimapnzees share a
recent common ancestor
Figure 5.3.1 Cladogram

Figure 5.3.2 Cladogram Example