COURSE CODE: SBI3U

UNIT1: DIVERSITY OF LIVING THINGS

ASSESSMENT OF LEARNING:
PERFORMANCE TASK#1

Classifying a New Organism

Getting Started
In this unit, you have learned about how scientists identify, name,
and classify organisms. You have learned how to use and create
dichotomous keys as well as how to read and draw phylogenetic
trees that show the evolutionary relationships among organisms.
In this activity, you will create a new animal or plant that fits into
an existing taxonomic phylum but does not fit into an existing
class.

Learning goals:
You will study the characteristics of a particular taxonomic
phylum to design a new organism that fits into the phylum but
does not fit into an existing class. You will identify, name, and
classify your new organism. You will communicate your results to
the class in a creative manner. You may choose to present
your results in the form of a multimedia presentation, video,
website, podcast, or a role-play simulation, in which your group
presents the discovery to a zoological or botanical university
department in an interview to gain admission to the department.

Success Criteria:
•Your presentation must demonstrate that the organism you
have created is a new species.
•Your presentation should include:
• sketches of your organism showing details of the body plan
• a 3-D model of the organism
• a common name, scientific name, range, habitat, niche, food
preferences, and life cycle including reproduction strategies
of the organism
• a “spin” story as to why your organism is important to the
scientific world
• a dichotomous key that can be used to differentiate your
organism from five other members of the same phylum
• a phylogenetic tree that shows the evolutionary relationships
of your organism with five other species in the same phylum
• an explicit statement that explains why this organism does
not fit into an existing class
 What You Need
• diversity guides and/or
computer with Internet access
• materials for creating
your model organism
• newsprint chart paper or
a concept map program
What You Need to Know
You have learned that life is very diverse. You have also learned
that organisms adapt to changing environmental conditions and
that novel features appear in organisms and evolve over time.
Use the following examples of extreme features and behaviour in
organisms as inspiration:
• The Cymothoa exigua isopod eats the tongue of a snapper fish
and replaces the tongue (Figure A18.1). The fish then uses the
parasite like a tongue, and the parasite feeds on the fish’s
blood or mucus.

 1989 Mathew Gilligan, Savannah State College, Savannah,

GA
Figure A18.1 This photo shows the Cymothoa exigua in the
mouth of a snapper fish.

• Bombardier beetles mix chemicals inside their bodies to create

an explosion that expels scalding chemicals to defend itself
from
prey (Figure A18.2).
  Dr. Thomas Eisner/Visuals Unlimited, Inc.
Figure A18.2 A bombardier beetle has a “gun” at the rear end
of its body that allows it to shoot hot liquid at its attackers.

 Pitcher plants, sundews, and flytraps change “roles” on

would-be insect consumers by trapping and “eating” the
insects instead of being eaten.
 Leaf cutter ants farm a mould crop that they feed small
leaf fragments and keep pesticide-free by rubbing
antibiotic chemicals over the crop.
 The Gympie-Gympie stinging tree is covered with tiny
glass fibres that act like hypodermic needles, injecting
toxic chemicals into passing dogs, horses, and humans
that can cause pain for years.
 The wood frog can become a “frog-sicle,” freezing
completely and then thawing out the following season.
 Mantis shrimps have eight colour receptors, which are
more than twice as many as humans, that allow them to
see millions of shades of colour.
 Geckos have sticky pads on their feet that enable them to
stick to any surface, including the smoothest glass.
 Amphipods thrive 11 km below the surface of the ocean,
withstanding 1000 atmospheres of pressure. In contrast,
under normal conditions, terrestrial animals including
humans undergo 14.7 atmospheres of pressure.
 Army and driver ants hunt in armies in excess of 20 million
worker ants that eat everything in their path. Argentine
ants exist in supercolonies of billions of ants.
Tortoiseshell bamboo can grow a metre in a single day.
 To quickly identify where to classify a newly discovered
organism, scientists may use a dichotomous key. Once
they reach a stage where they cannot identify the
organism, then it is likely that they have a new species
and will need to create new categories in order to classify
it.


Procedure
1. choose one of the following phyla in which your new
organism will belong:
• chordates
• arthropods
• gymnosperms
• angiosperms
 You may wish to brainstorm and record ideas for your new
organism and then use your notes to choose the phylum that
is the best fit.
2. Research the defining characteristics of the phylum and
research the defining characteristics of each class in the
phylum.
3. use the online resources to research the defining
characteristics of your phylum or class. Be sure to clearly
identify the key features of the phylum or class.
4. Review your initial brainstorm notes. Brainstorm again to
create a list of potential features of your organism. Once you
finish, evaluate each feature and try to reach a consensus on
the major features you will include in your organism.
5. Once you have determined the key features of your
organism, you are ready to gather the materials, synthesize
the specific details for your presentation, and create your
organism.
 6. Write a report that “spins” a story as to why the study of your
organism is important for science.
Make sure that your report has an explicit statement that
indicates how your species fits into the correct phylum but
does not belong to any existing class. Decide what form your
presentation will take, such as a multimedia presentation,
video, website, podcast, or role-play simulation, and put it
together.

Assessing Your Work

7. What was the most challenging part of this activity? What
was the easiest part? Suggest reasons for your choices.
8. Which of the new organisms created by the class appears to
be the most believable? What features of the presentation
made it so believable? Explain your answer.
 Level 1 Level 2 Level 3 Level
Knowledge and Understanding

Understanding of Student demonstrates Student demonstrates Student demonstrates Student demonstrates thor
content limited knowledge of some knowledge of considerable the distinguishing characte
Describing unifying the distinguishing the distinguishing knowledge of the habitat, types of reproducti
and distinguishing characteristics such characteristics such distinguishing physical structure. The ski
anatomical and as habitat, types of as habitat, types of characteristics such and understandings learne
physiological reproduction, or reproduction, or as habitat, types of the required curriculum bu
characteristics general physical general physical reproduction, or extensive enrichment well
structure. It was not structure. The skills, general physical classroom experience.
clear that this project concepts and ideas structure. The skills,
/20 met required fulfilled some of the concepts and ideas
curriculum standards. curriculum standards. fulfilled considerable
curriculum standards.

Thinking and Investigation

Use of initiating and Student uses initiating Student uses initiating Student uses initiating Student uses initiating and
planning skills and and planning skills and planning skills and planning skills strategies with
strategies and strategies with and strategies with and strategies with a high degree of effectiven
limited effectiveness. some effectiveness. considerable organism and project outlin
Designed organism Designed organism effectiveness. all aspects of a completely
and project shows no and project is Designed organism thing.
real attempt to meet incomplete, with parts and project is fairly
/20 the goal of the project. and/or ideas missing. complete, with only
one or two parts or
ideas missing or
poorly developed.

Communication

Expression and Student expresses Student expresses Student expresses Student expresses and org
organization of ideas and organizes ideas and organizes ideas and organizes ideas information in report with a
and information in and information in and information in and information in effectiveness.
oral, visual, and/or report with limited report with some report with Sketch, model, and presen
written forms effectiveness. effectiveness. considerable convey details as appropri
Sketch, model, and Sketch, model, and effectiveness.
/30 presentation do not presentation convey Sketch, model, and
convey the details of some of the details of presentation all give
the organism. the organism, but appropriate detail on
lack clarity. the specifics of the
organism.

Level 1 Level 2 Level 3 Lev

Application

Transfer of knowledge and
skills to unfamiliar contexts
/30
Student transfers Student transfers Student transfers Student transfers know
knowledge and knowledge and knowledge and skills unfamiliar contexts wi
skills to unfamiliar skills to unfamiliar to unfamiliar contexts effectiveness.
contexts with limited contexts with some with considerable
effectiveness. effectiveness. effectiveness.

Total Mark:100