UNIT 1 PART 2: CLASSIFICATION OF LIVING THINGS All living things are put into groups, or classified. They are organized. This makes them easier to study and easier to find. The branch of biology that deals with classifying and naming organisms is called taxonomy.

Taxonomic Categories Largest group: Kingdom Phylum Class Order Family Genus Smallest group: species Only one type of organism is in a species.

Each kind of organism has a two word Latin name made up of its genus and species names. This is its scientific name and is always written in italics. Kingdom Animal Phylum Chordate Class Mammal Order Carnivora Primate Family Canine Felidae Homidae Genus Canus Felis Homo species familiarus lupis domesticus sapiens Common Dog Wolf Cat Human The scientific name of a human is Homo sapiens.

The Six Kingdoms Today, with the use of DNA, taxonomists put organisms into one of six kingdoms.

Archaebacteria Live in extremely hostile environments : Volcanic hot springs Salt lakes or seas Bottom of swamps Most live without oxygen Unicellular Prokaryotic

Eubacteria Includes most bacteria, those that cause disease, and cyanobacteria Unicellular Prokaryotic

Protista Mostly unicellular and eukaryotic Protozoa are animal-like and eat food. Algae are plant-like and use photosynthesis.

Fungi Mushrooms, yeasts, molds Eukaryotic Cell walls are different than plants. No chlorophyll so no photosynthesis. They do not make their own food.

Plantae Mosses, liverworts, ferns, and seed plants Can not move on their own Multicellular, cells have cell walls Eukaryotic Have chlorophyll and use photosynthesis

Animalia Mammals, insects, birds, sponges Can move on their own Multicellular, cells do not have cell walls Eukaryotic Must get food from the environment

Taxonomic Keys A tool used to identify organisms already classified. Most are dichotomous. That is, there are only two choices at each step that describe some characteristic of the organism.

Using the characteristics shown above, please make a dichotomous key for the 13 triangular critters at the left. Some characteristics may be used more than once. You may use their assigned numbers for names.