5.

3 Classification

Syllabus objectives:

Understandings:
 The binomial system of names for species is universal among biologists and has been agreed and
developed at a series of congresses
 When species are discovered they are given scientific names using the binomial system
 All organisms are classified into three domains
 Taxonomists classify species using a hierarchy of taxa
 The principal taxa for classifying eukaryotes are kingdom, phylum, class, order, family, genus and
species
 In a natural classification, the genus and accompanying higher taxa consists of all the species that
have evolved from one common ancestral species
 Taxonomists sometimes reclassify groups of species when new evidence shows that a previous taxon
contains species that have evolved from different ancestral species
 Natural classifications help in identification of species and allow the prediction of characteristics
shared by species within a group

Applications:
 Classification of one plant and one animal species from domain to species level
 Recognition features of bryophyta, filicinophyta, coniferophyta and angiospermophyta
 Recognition features of porifera, cnidaria, platyhelmintha, annelida, mollusca, arthropoda and
chordata
 Recognition features of birds, mammals, amphibians, reptiles and fish

Skills
 Construction of dichotomous keys for use in identifying specimens

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The binomial system of classification:

Aronstab?
Lords-and-ladies?
Cuckoo-pint?
Jack in the pulpit?
La chandelle?
Le pied-de-veau?
La vachotte?
Alcatrax?

Why Do We Classify Organisms?

• Biologists group organisms to represent similarities and proposed relationships.
• Classification systems change with expanding knowledge about new and well-known organisms.
• Two central pillars are forming the basis of modern classification in biological sciences:
What are the two central pillars forming the basis of modern classification in the biological sciences?

The binomial system was developed by Carl Linnaeus, a Swedish botanists and taxonomist. It is still used
today and is the basis for classification and naming of all new species. It is based on the physical traits of
species, and most of his classified groups are still accurate.

What does the term “Binomial Nomenclature” stand for?

What specifications must be considered when writing down the binomial name of an organism? Give examples:

Define the term “species”:

What is a subspecies?

Some exceptions:

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Practice examples:

Taxonomy:

Hierarchical Classification
Carl von Linnaeus created a hierarchical classification system using seven
taxonomic categories, or taxa (Kingdom, Phylum, Class, Order, Family,
Genus, Species). 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.

The taxonomic scheme classifies species into groups belonging to more comprehensive groups.

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The three domains:

Traditional classifications systems have recognized two major categories of organisms based on cell types: eukaryotes
and prokaryotes. However, this classification is slightly inaccurate since prokaryotes have been found to be too
diverse. In particular the analysis of ribosomal RNA has found two distinct groups in prokaryotes -they were given the
names eubacteria and archea.
The organisms classified as Archaebacteria ("ancient bacteria") are
described as extremophiles -- they "love" extreme environments
where no other lifeforms can exist. An example would be colonies of
archeabacteria living around the deep sea volvanic vents called black
smokers: the colonies thrive in complete darkness, without oxygen,
surrounded by superheated water, and bathed in a chemical soup of
hydrogen sulfide and other dissolved minerals. The Eubacteria is a
prokaryotic domain of life with a set of characters that unite its
extraordinarily diverse taxa. Unlike the Archaea, the Eubacteria have
been known and studied for more than 150 years. This is because all
known bacterial pathogens are Eubacteria

What are the three domains of life?

Note down the differences between the 3 domains of the hierarchical classification by completing the table:
Domain
Bacteria Archea Eukarya
Histones associated Proteins similar to histones
Absent
with DNA bound to DNA
Present in some genes
Presence of introns Rare or absent

Structure of cell Not made of peptidoglycan

peptidoglycan
walls
Glycerol-ester lipids Glycerol-ether lipids Glycerol ester lipids
Cell membrane unbranched side chains, Unbranched side chains Unbranched side chains
differences D-Glucose L-form of glycerol D-form of glycerol

Usual habitat

Practise Question:
The photomicrograph below shows the protozoan Paramecium caudatum.

a. State the genus of this organism.

b. State the domain in which it is classified.

[Source: Deuterostome, CC BY-SA 3.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.]

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Answer the questions below:

1. Which of the following pairs is most closely related?

A. Black Tip Reef Shark and White Shark

B. Grey Reef Shark and Shortfin Mako
C. Grey Reef Shark and Winghead
D. Creek Whaler and Black Tip Reef Shark

2. Which of the following is/are true for the Great Hammerhead and Scalloped Hammerhead?

i. There are two subspecies of the same species

ii. There are two species in the same genus
iii. They are members of the same order
iv. They are from different phyla

A. i only
B. i and ii
C. ii and iii
D. iv only

3. Which of the following is/are true for all of the sharks in the chart?

i. There are members of the same species.

ii. They are part of the same genus.
iii. They are part of the same class.
iv. They are part of the same kingdom.

A. i only
B. i and ii
C. ii and iii
D. Iii and iv

4. Which of the following are true for these elephants?

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Artificial classification:
Is a classification based on exterior similarities, not on
ancestry or origin. In artificial classification only a few
characters are considered, and the members of different
groups are usually not similar in hereditary pattern. The
individuals are usually not related phylogenetically.
These schemes are easy to develop and relatively stable
(unlikely to change over time).
What are the problems with artificial classification?

Describe one example of artificial classification:

Natural classification:

In natural classification, all members of a genus or higher

taxon usually have a common ancestral and evolutionary
history and share developmental characteristics.

What are advantages of natural classification?

When proceeding down the taxonomic hierarchy

from kingdom to species, the number of animals
in each group decreases and the similarities
between then increase. A phylum contains a
large number of organisms which share several
fundamental features but display quite a wide
range of form. At species level the various
species in a genus are extremely similar.

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The classification of humans has caused a lot of controversy:

Humans are assigned to the order Primates and the family Hominidae. New fossil findings and molecular
biology has caused a lot of controversy in the classification of humans. It is still not quite clear whether
chimpanzees and gorillas should be in the same family together with humans, or in a family called Pongidae
like all other great apes. The Homininae sub-family was created to include gorillas and chimpanzees when it
was deduced that they share more common ancestry with humans than with other great apes (e.g. orang-
utan).

Examples of one animal and one plant classification:

Animals and plants are kingdoms of the domain Eukaryota. The table below shows the classification of two
plant and two animal species from kingdom to species.

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Recognition features of bryophyta, filicinophyta, coniferophyta and angiospermophyta:

Fill in the table below

comparing the
recognition features of
the 4 plant phyla:

Phylum Physical characteristics (Stem, leaves, roots) Height Reproduction

Bryophytes (Mosses)

Filicinophyta (Ferns)

Coniferophyta

Angiospermophyta

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Recognition of features of birds, mammals, amphibians, reptiles and fish:

The animal kingdom has many phyla (sgl.phylum)

Although there are approximately 35 phyla, the following nine include the majority of the species:

• Mollusca
• Porifera
• Cnidaria
• Platyhelminthes
• Nematoda
• Annelida
• Arthropoda
• Echinodermata
• Chordata.

The phylum Chordata (animals with spine) has 5 major classes: Fish, amphibians, reptiles, birds & mammals

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Recognition features of porifera, cnidaria, platylhelmintha, annelida, mollusca, arthropoda and chordata

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Distinguish between the features of the following animal phyla:

Phylum Symmetry Digestive tract Segmentation and other features Examples

Porifera

Cnidaria

Platyhelminthes

Annelida

Mollusca

Arthropoda

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Practice Questions:

1. If seeds of an unknown species of plant are discovered, what assumption can be made about the species?

A. Its male gametes are contained within pollen.

B. Its seeds are contained within fruits.
C. It is in the domain archaea.
D. It is in the phylum angiospermophyta.

2. An animal has the following characteristics: bilateral symmetry, mouth but no anus, ribbon shape. Which
phylum does the animal belong to?

A. Mollusca
B. Cnidaria
C. Annelida
D. Platyhelmintha

3. An organism has the following characteristics:

• single opening for ingestion and egestion

• radial symmetry
• tentacles with stinging cells.

In what phylum would it most likely be classified?

A. Annelida
B. Cnidaria
C. Platyhelminthes
D. Porifera

4. The image shows an organism belonging to the Kingdom Animalia.

[Source: Titan beetle male. Locality: “RK4,5 route Cacao”, French Guiana
© 2011, Didier Descouens https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/]

What feature does this organism have in common with all members of the phylum chordata?

A. Legs and wings

B. Mouth but no anus
C. Bilateral symmetry
D. Chitinous exoskeleton

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Dichotomous keys:

A dichotomous key is a (usually

written) device constructed from a
series of highly organized statements
arranged into couplets.

A couplet consists of two descriptions,

which should represent mutually
exclusive choices (often it is a
particular combination of
characteristics that determines the
difference).

Each couplet only expects two

answers to each question (YES or NO).

Practice examples:

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Application: Design a dichotomous key for 4 – 5 species from these two classes of arthropods:

The beetle & spider anatomy below

should help you with the correct key
terminology:

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Design a dichotomous key to identify plants (Group work):
1. You will be working in groups of 3.
2. Download the App Pl@ntNet from the AppStore or from the Google
Playstore in order to be able to identify the plant leaves you are collecting.
3. Collect 4 plant leaves (each student!).
4. Bring your leaves to school (ideally they should still be alive…) and make
sure you have identified the plant leaf already.
5. Make yourself familiar with the terminology for the structural and
anatomical features (leaf shapes, margins, venation…) of your leaf/plant.
6. In your group, develop a dichotomous key for your leaves (at least 10 leaves
need to be included). Make a Google Slide/Doc for the key (including
pictures)
7. Once finished, this key will be passed on to the students from another group – if they identify all leaves
correctly they will win that battle! If you identify their leaves correctly, you win the competition!

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