Characteristic & Cells

• Five kingdoms of living things

  • Animals
  • Plants
  • Fungi
  • Protoctists
  • Prokaryotes
• Animals

  • They are multicellular
  • Their cells contain a nucleus but no cell walls or chloroplasts
  • They feed on organic substances made by other living things
• Plants

  • They are multicellular
  • Their cells contain a nucleus, chloroplasts and cellulose cell walls
  • They all feed by photosynthesis
• Fungi

  • Usually multicellular
  • Cells have nuclei and cell walls not made from cellulose
  • Do not photosynthesize but feed by saprophytic (on dead or decaying material) or parasitic (on live material) nutrition
• Protoctists (e.g. Amoeba, Paramecium, Plasmodium)

  • Most are unicellular but some are multicellular
  • All have a nucleus, some may have cell walls and chloroplasts
  • Some protoctists photosynthesise and some feed on organic substances made by other living things
• Prokaryotes (bacteria, blue-green algae)

  • Often unicellular
  • Cells have cell walls (not made of cellulose)
  • Cells have cytoplasm but no nucleus or mitochondria
• Monocotyledon:

  Petals: multiple of 3

  Leaves: parallel veins
• Dicotyledon

  Petals: multiples of 4 or 5

  Leaves: reticulated veins
• Viruses

  • They do not carry out the seven life processes for themselves
  • They take over a host cell's metabolic pathways in order to make multiple copies of themselves
• Virus structure

  Genetic material (RNA or DNA) inside a protein coat
• Mammals

  • Fur/hair on the skin
  • External ears (pinna)
  • Internal fertilisation, giving the birth of young
  • Mammary glands
• Reptiles

  • Thick, dry, scaly skin
  • Usually four legs
  • Internal fertilisation, conception from egg
  • Soft-shelled eggs
• Fish


  • Wet scales
  • Streamlined body shape
  • External fertilisation and soft eggs
  • Uses gills to breathe
• Amphibians


  • Smooth, moist skin
  • External fertilisation and soft eggs
  • Gills & Lungs can live on land and water
  • Most have four legs
• Birds

  • Feathers on body and scales on legs
  • Constant internal body temperature
  • Hard eggs
  • Internal fertilisation, birth through eggs
• Crustaceans (e.g. crabs)

  • Have an exoskeleton
  • One pair of compound eyes
  • Two body segments
  • More than four pairs of legs (10-14 legs)
• Arachnids: (e.g. spiders)

  • Two body segments – thorax and abdomen
  • Four pairs of legs (8 legs)
• Myriapods: (e.g. centipedes)


  • Segmented body
  • One pair of antennae
  • 10+ pairs of legs – 1 or 2 pairs on each segment
• Insects: (e.g. bees)

  • Three body segments – head, thorax and abdomen
  • Three pairs of jointed legs (6 legs)
  • One pair of antennae
  • 1 or 2 pairs of wings