Identification and Taxonomy

• Identification of an organism in a sample can be made using classification guides, biological keys, or analysis of DNA or protein
• Organisms can be classified by both taxonomy and phylogenetics
• Taxonomy involves the identification and naming of organisms and their classification into groups based on shared characteristics
• Phylogenetics is the study of the evolutionary history and relationships among individuals or groups of organisms
• Phylogenetics is changing the traditional classification of many organisms
• Familiarity with taxonomic groupings allows predictions and inferences to be made about the biology of an organism from better-known (model) organisms
• Model organisms are those that are either easily studied or have been well studied
• Information obtained from them can be applied to other species that are more difficult to study directly