living world

• Diversity in the living world includes a large variety of living organisms, such as potted plants, insects, birds, pets, and other animals and plants
• Increasing the area of observation leads to a greater range and variety of organisms
• Each different plant, animal, or organism represents a species
• The number of known and described species ranges between 1.7-1.8 million, referring to biodiversity
• Nomenclature is the process of standardizing the naming of living organisms globally
• Scientific names for plants are based on the International Code for Botanical Nomenclature (ICBN)
• Scientific names for animals are based on the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature (ICZN)
• Biological names are generally in Latin and italicized, with the first word denoting the genus and the second word denoting the specific epithet
• The naming system using two components is called Binomial nomenclature
• Classification is the process of grouping organisms into convenient categories based on observable characteristics
• Taxa are scientific terms for these categories at different levels
• Taxonomy involves the classification of living organisms based on external and internal structure, cell structure, development process, and ecological information
• Characterization, identification, classification, and nomenclature are basic processes in taxonomy
• Systematics is the branch of study focused on understanding the relationships among different organisms
• Systematics is the branch of study that focuses on the systematic arrangement of organisms
• Linnaeus used Systema Naturae as the title of his publication
• The scope of systematics includes identification, nomenclature, and classification
• Systematics takes into account evolutionary relationships between organisms
• Taxonomic categories are part of the overall taxonomic arrangement and represent ranks or categories
• Each category is called a taxonomic category and all categories together form the taxonomic hierarchy
• Insects are an example of a taxonomic category, sharing common features like three pairs of jointed legs
• Taxonomical studies have led to common categories such as kingdom, phylum (or division for plants), class, order, family, genus, and species
• Species are groups of individual organisms with fundamental similarities
• Species can be distinguished based on distinct morphological differences
• Examples of species include Mangifera indica, Solanum tuberosum (potato), and Panthera leo (lion)
• Genus comprises a group of related species with more characters in common compared to species of other genera
• Examples include potato and brinjal belonging to the genus Solanum
• Species like lion, leopard, and tiger are all species of the genus Panthera
• Family includes related genera with fewer similarities compared to genus and species
• Examples include the family Solanaceae with genera Solanum, Petunia, and Datura
• In animals, the family Felidae includes genera Panthera and Felis
• Order is an assemblage of families with a few similar characters
• Plant families like Convolvulaceae and Solanaceae are included in the order Polymoniales based on floral characters
• The animal order Carnivora includes families like Felidae and Canidae
• Class includes related orders, such as order Primata and order Carnivora in class Mammalia
• Phylum includes classes like fishes, amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals, all included in phylum Chordata based on common features like the presence of notochord and dorsal hollow neural system
• Kingdom is the highest category, with animals belonging to Kingdom Animalia and plants belonging to Kingdom Plantae
• The taxonomic categories from species to kingdom are shown in ascending order starting with species
• Living organisms were perceived differently by early man compared to inanimate matter
• Early man deified some inanimate matter and some animals and plants