6.1 Classifying Biodiversity

Question 1

What are the 5 things classifying and naming organisms enables us to do?

Answer 1

1. Communicate biological knowledge efficiently
2. Recognise an organism that is poisonous and dangerous
3. Recognise beneficial organisms,
4. Develop ways of controlling pest species and diseases
5. Identify endangered species so that we can protect and conserve them

Question 2

What does taxonomy refer to?

Answer 2

The scientific discipline concerned with the naming and classification of organisms into groups called taxa.

Question 3

What is biological classification?

Answer 3

The system placing groups into taxa, which enables us to understand the evolution and diversity of living things.

Question 4

What is a phylogeny?

Answer 4

A branching diagram showing the relationships between organisms like a family tree.

Question 5

What is the classification hierarchy?

Answer 5

• Kingdom
• Phylum
• Class
• Order
• Family
• Genus
• Species

Question 6

What forms a genus? Give an example:

Answer 6

A group of closely related species.

Eg. Lions and tigers are members of the same genus

Question 7

What forms a family? Give an example:

Answer 7

A group of closely related genera.

Eg. Cats, lions, and tigers are all members of the same family.

Question 8

What forms an order? Give an example:

Answer 8

A group of related families

Eg. Chimps are members of the order Primates

Question 9

What forms a class? Give an example:

Answer 9

A group of related orders.
Eg. Cats, dogs, koalas, and monkeys are all members of the class Mammalia

Question 10

What forms a phylum? Give an example:

Answer 10

A group of related classes.

Eg. Mammals, birds, and sharks are some of the classes grouped into phylum Chordata

Question 11

What is a species? Give an example:

Answer 11

Members of a group of similar organisms that are capable of interbreeding under natural conditions to produce viable and fertile offspring.
Eg. Lions and tigers are not the same species as they can only mate in captivity and their offspring are infertile.

Question 12

What is a sub-species?

Answer 12

Classification name given to different geographic forms or races within species.

Question 13

What are hybrids? Give an example:

Answer 13

Offspring from the cross-breeding of two species.

Eg. Liger, mule, zonkey

Question 14

What is Linnaeus’ system of classification? Give an example:

Answer 14

When a species is given two Latinized words, where the name of the genus is put first (with a capital letter), and then the name of the species.
-Written in italics or is underlined
Eg. Apis Melllifera

Question 15

What are the 4 advantages of scientific names?

Answer 15

1. Common names vary from language to language, but scientific names are universal
2. The sam common name is sometimes given to different species
3. Scientific names give an indication of how closely related differeent organisms are
4. Common names may be misleading, suggesting relationships that are not valid
   Eg. Starfish are not actually fish

Question 16

What are protists?

Answer 16

Mostly unicellular organisms which inhabit fresh and salty water or moist environments.
-Some are plant-like, some are fungi-like, and some are animal-like (but lack the specialised features of these groups)

Question 17

What are fungi?

Answer 17

Common organisms, such as bread mould, yeast, mushrooms and toadstools, which secrete enzymes over the surface of their food and absorb the broken down products directly.
-Do not photosynthesize

Question 18

What are plants?

Answer 18

Multicellular autotrophs (photosynthesize using chlorophyll), such as liverworts and mosses and large more complex forms, such as ferns and seed plants.

Question 19

What does ‘molecular criteria’ refer to and who introduced it?

Answer 19

It refers to the classification system introduced by Carl Woese in 1990 which organises living things into different domains.

Question 20

Name the 3 domains:

Answer 20

1. Bacteria
2. Archea
3. Eukarya

Question 21

What is bacteria?

Answer 21

Microscopic unicellular organisms, which lack a nucleus and other cell organelles.

Question 22

What are archaea?

Answer 22

Bacteria that are mostly extremophiles which means that they thrive in extreme environments, such as salt lakes, oxygen-free mud of marshes and swamps, and hot springs and lakes.

Question 23

What are eukarya?

Answer 23

Composed of all animals, plants, fungi and the various lineages of protists.

Question 24

What are viruses?

Answer 24

Are microscopic and contain nucleic acid which is used to take over its host’s genes, forcing the host cell to create new viruses.
-Don’t fit into the 5 kingdoms of life as they are classed as nonliving since they can’t reproduce by themselves.