SUMMARY - CLASSIFICATION

The information used to classify objects can be put into a key. In a dichotomous key each stage
or branch in the key has only two alternatives to help identify the object.

Remember when designing keys, select characteristics that group those objects with the greatest
similarities together.

Living things belong to the same species if they are structurally similar (look similar) and can
interbreed and produce viable and fertile offspring.

The Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus devised the binomial system. In the scientific name of the
domestic horse (Equus caballus) the first word Equus is the name of the genus. It always
begins with a capital letter. The second word caballus is in small letters and refers to its
species name.

Species names are either written in Italics or underlined. The correct way to write the species
name for the domestic horse is Equus caballus or Equus caballus.

All living things can be placed into one of five large groups called kingdoms: Animalia (animals),
Plantae (plants), Fungi, Protoctista (protoctists) and Prokaryotae (prokaryotes).

As you move down the hierarchy of classification from Kingdom to Species, organisms within a
group become more closely related (share more features) and the number of different
organisms in the group decreases.
PaC OF GaS where P is phylum, C is class, O is order, F is family, G is genus and S is species.
KINGDOM ANIMALIA

Organisms belonging to Kingdom Animalia (animals) have the following characteristics:

nucleus.
multicellular.
ingest food.
heterotrophic.
usually move around.
co-ordinate via nerves.
aquatic and terrestrial.
Within Kingdom Animalia there are a number of different phyla.
Animals are often split into two groups: ones that possess a backbone (vertebrates) and those
without (invertebrates).

PHYLUM CHORDATA

All vertebrates are in Phylum Chordata (chordates).

Within Phylum Chordata there are a number of classes:
Class Mammalia (mammals).

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 Class Aves (birds).
Class Reptilia (reptiles).
Class Amphibia (amphibians).
Class Osteichthyes (bony fish).
Class Chondrichthyes (cartilaginous fish).

OTHER ANIMAL PHYLA

Phyla: Arthropoda (arthropods), Mollusca (molluscs), Echinodermata (echinoderms), Cnidaria

(cnidarians), Platyhelminthes (flatworms), Annelida (annelids segmented worms), Nematoda
(nematodes or roundworms and Porifera (sponges).

PHYLUM ARTHROPODA

Within Phylum Arthropoda there are a number of classes: Class Crustacea (crustaceans), Insecta
(insects), Arachnida (arachnids), Diplopoda (millipedes) and Chilopoda (centipedes).

KINGDOM PLANTAE

Organisms belonging to Kingdom Plantae (plants) have the following characteristics:

nucleus.
cell wall.
chloroplasts
multicellular.
The Kingdom Plantae is split into a number of phyla. The four main phyla are: Bryophyta
(bryophytes), Pterophyta (ferns), Coniferophyta (conifers) and Anthophyta (angiosperms).

KINGDOM FUNGI

Organisms belonging to Kingdom Fungi have the following characteristics:

nucleus.
cell wall (not made of cellulose).
do not have chloroplasts
are unicellular.
are multicellular.
are heterotrophic.
do not usually move around (the spores can).
are terrestrial.

KINGDOM PROTISTA

Organisms belonging to Kingdom Protista (protists) have the following characteristics:

nucleus.
some have a cell wall.

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 some have chloroplasts
unicellular.
multicellular.
heterotrophic.
autotrophic.
some ingest food.
do move around if unicellular.
are virtually all aquatic.
some are terrestrial.

KINGDOM PROKARYOTAE

Organisms belonging to Kingdom Prokaryotae (prokaryotes) have the following characteristics:

do not have a nucleus.

have a cell wall.
do not have chloroplasts
are mostly unicellular.
are heterotrophic.
are autotrophic.
do move.
are aquatic.
are terrestrial.

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