1. History of Biological Taxonomy BIOL447 19 January 2016

2. Aristotle (right, with Plato)  384-322 B.C.  Extensive natural history observations  30 surviving mss. (of ~150)  Genera and species (no binomial names, however)  Many grouping terms survive to this day  Exs: Coleoptera Diptera

3. Aristotle’s genera  Five genera of vertebrates  Mammals  Birds  Reptiles and amphibians  Fishes  Whales  Five genera of invertebrates  Cephalopods  Crustaceans  Insects and arachnids  Shelled animals (mollusks, echinoderms, etc.)  Zoophytes (cnidarians, bryozoans, etc.)

4. Natural Theology  Taxonomy = "God's plan" in creation of living organisms  Variety of classification schemes proposed  Exs:Ray Linnaeus MacLeay

5. John Ray (1627-1705)  English naturalist  Lectured at Cambridge  Ordained Anglican priest  Classification of plants based on total morphology First to recognize monocots vs. dicots  Early user of binomial nomenclature

6. Polynomens  Changed at will by earlier systematists Ex: Convolvulus folio Altheae Clusius 1576 Convolvulus argenteus Altheae folio Bauhin 1623 Convolvulus foliis ovatis divisis basi truncatus: laciniis intermediis duplo longioribus Linnaeus 1738 Convolvulus foliis palmatis cordatis sericeis: lobis repandis, pedunculis bifloris Linnaeus 1753

7. Carl Linne (1707-1778)  Swede  Later Carl von Linne Preferred Carolus Linnaeus  Medical study led to lifelong study of botany Excursions with students to collect plants Prolific taxonomic output

8. Linnaeus’ Species Plantarum (1753)  Detailed descriptions with polynomials of 5900 plant spp.  Binomials (nomen triviale) in margins

9. Blunt p. 249

10. Linnaeus’ Systema Naturae, 10 th ed. (1758)  Animal and plant systematics  Detailed descriptions Binomials only beginning with the 10th ed. in 1758  Published 12 editions total (1735-1768)  1 st : 14 folio pp.  29 surviving copies  12 th : 3 volumes, 2300 octavo pp.  Animals comprise one volume (824 pp.)

11. Systema Naturae, 1 st ed. (1735)

12. Systema Naturae, 10 th ed. (1758)

13. Winston Fig. 2.1 p. 27

14. KCOGS in Systema Naturae (10 th ed.)  P and F added soon thereafter  Linnaeus regarded genera and species as part of natural system Agnostic about higher levels

15. Linnaeus’ Classification of Plantae

16. Linnaeus’ Classification of Animalia

17. Linnaeus  Assigned binomials to ca. 4400 animals and 7700 plants Earlier use of binomials for some species in 1745, 1749, 1752  Botanists: 1753 is starting point of modern taxonomy  Zoologists: 1758 is starting point

18. Linnaeus’ Modest Self-Assessment (from his autobiography) No one before him [=me] had pursued his profession with greater zeal and had more hearers; made more observations in natural history; had fuller insight into all the three kingdoms of Nature; been a greater botanist or zoologist; so well described the natural history of his own country—its flora, fauna and topography; written more books, more correctly, more methodically, from his own experience; so completely reformed a whole science and inaugurated a new era; sent out his disciples to so many parts of the world; written his name on more plants and insects, indeed on the whole of Nature; become more famous the whole world over… listed so many animals—yes, as many as all the others put together… been a member of more scientific societies [long list]…

19. Linnaeus’ Modest Self-Assessment (from his autobiography) God himself has led him with His own almighty hand; has caused him to sprout from a stump, transplanted him to a distant and lovely spot [presumably Sweden] and made him grow into a goodly tree; has inspired him with such an ardent enthusiasm for science that it became his greatest objective… provided him with the largest herbarium in the world, his greatest joy; preserved him from fire; let him live for more than sixty years…

20. Readings for Next Time  Schuh & Brower:3-17  Winston:3-8; 19-29  Additional:A & B  A. On MacLeay's quinarian system of classification: pp. 101113 in Ospovat, D. 1981. The Development of Darwin's Theory: Natural History, Natural Theology, and Natural Selection, 18381859. Cambridge University Press.  B. On Linnaeus' system of classification: Stearn, W.T. 1971. Appendix: Linnaean classification, nomenclature, and method. Pp. 242249 in Blunt, W. 1971. The Compleat Naturalist: A Life of Linnaeus. William Collins, Sons & Company Limited, London.