Taxonomy
Cards (14)
- Taxonomy
- Derived from two Greek words:
- Taxis: Arrangement
- Nomia: Method
- The science of describing, naming, and classifying organisms.
- Aristotle
- One of the greatest ancient Greek philosophers (384–322 BC).
- First to classify all living things into two major groups:
- Vertebrates: Animals with blood.
- Invertebrates: Animals without blood.
- Carl Linnaeus
- Swedish botanist, physician, and zoologist.
- Known as the Father of Modern Taxonomy.
- Formalized binomial nomenclature, the modern system of naming organisms.
- Systema Naturae:
- Published the 1st edition in 1735 (12 pages).
- The 10th edition (1758) classified 4,400 animal species and 7,700 plant species.
- The 12th edition used index cards for tracking classifications.
- Species Plantarum:
- Published in 1753.
- Described 7,300 plant species and introduced binomial nomenclature for plants.
- Species:
- The basic unit of classification.
- Tools for Identification:
- Dichotomous Key - The best tool for identification
- Pictorial Key - Can be subjective
- Random Access Key
- Systematics:
- Broader than taxonomy.
- Groups organisms based on evolutionary relationships.
- Concerned with both taxonomy and phylogeny.
- Cladistics:
- Classifies organisms based on the recency of common ancestry rather than structural similarity.
- Cladograms:
- Branching diagrams showing evolutionary relationships.
- Includes monophyletic (single ancestor) and polyphyletic (multiple ancestors) groups.
- Types of Classification System:
- Artificial System
- Natural System
- Phylogenetic System
- Artificial System:
- Earliest classification system.
- Groups organisms based on non-evolutionary features.
- Natural System:
- Groups organisms by their natural characteristics (vegetative and reproductive).
- Focuses on related traits.
- Phylogenetic System:
- Based on evolutionary ancestry and genetic relationships.
- Generates evolutionary trees, or cladograms, to represent these relationships.