Lesson 7

Question 1

In the mid- ____s, scientists started to give every species its own unique name

Answer 1

1700s

this led to some confusion: people were using different names for the same species

Question 2

Approx how many species are on earth?

Answer 2

between 5 and 30 million (we don’t really know and probably never will)

Question 3

_____ _____ wrote a big book listing every known organism, and introduced a simple binomial naming system for every organism

Answer 3

Carl Linneaus

Question 4

Explain the parts of the binomial naming system

Answer 4

eg. Homo sapiens

Genus= homo: generic name (always capitalized)

Species (specific epithet)= sapiens (always lowercase)

the whole thing written in italics

Question 5

t/f

2 very closely related species can be named the same thing

Answer 5

FALSE

every species, no matter how similar, has their own name

Question 6

Rule of Priority=

Answer 6

once a species has been named and widely distributed/ accessible in literature, it cannot be renamed.

Question 7

What are 2 exceptions of the rule of priority?

Answer 7

1. If a new organism was accidentally given the same name as an already existing organism (happens sometimes)
2. if the organism wasn’t really a new species at all (lump it back in with the old species)

Question 8

Holotype=

Answer 8

the single specimen that you state as THE specimen, that in itself is a definition of the species

Question 9

T/F

For something extinct like dinosaurs, the holotype can be a single fossil

Answer 9

true

just needs to be accessible for other scientists to come look at it

Question 10

T/F

You can name up to 3 holotypes for each species

Answer 10

false

There is only ever 1 holotype. You can designate alternative specimens, but they’re given alternate names like “paratype” or “lectotype”

Question 11

How many species of non-avian dinosaurs have been named so far?

Answer 11

Around 1000 (always changing)

Question 11

Hesperonychus was a small carnivorous dinosaur, probably about the size of a _____
- was named at ____ _ ___
- found in _______ _______ ______

Answer 11

chicken

university of alberta
dinosaur provincial park

Question 12

t/f many species are named from partial skeletons

Answer 12

true

rarely find a whole skeleton in the field

Question 13

What is the holotype for Hesperonychus?

Answer 13

The pelvis fossil, stored at U of A

Question 14

How can you tell is a dinosaur was an adult by their pelvis?

Answer 14

If the ilium and pubis are fused together, it was an adult. This inly happens when an animal is mature

Question 15

Which is the most reliable feature that scientists can use to divide up organisms into separate species?
a. presence/ absence of antlers
b. # of fingers on the hand
c. color of skin/ feathers
d. length of limbs

Answer 15

b. # of fingers on the hand

This is the most unchanging characteristic

Question 16

Intraspecific variation=

Answer 16

differences within a species

It’s important to account for this when trying to determine if an organism is a new species or not

Question 17

3 kinds of intraspecific variation:
1. Individual variation=

Answer 17

the normal variation you see among individuals of any species (eg exact shape of antlers)

Question 18

3 kinds of intraspecific variation:

2. Ontogenetic variation=

Answer 18

variation because of age and growth (eg size of antlers: bigger= older)

Question 19

3 kinds of intraspecific variation:

3. sexual variation=

Answer 19

variation between males and females (eg presence/ absence of antlers)

Question 20

Morphological Species Concept=

Answer 20

All organisms which look the same are considered a single species

• there can be some variation b/w individuals, but if they look more or less the same, then they’re considered to be one species

useful concept but not foolproof!

Question 21

t/f

sometimes we need a certain body part to tell 2 species apart

Answer 21

true

sometimes the bodies of 2 species are almost identical, but the skulls, for example, are entirely different

Question 22

What’s one of the biggest issues with the morphological species concept?

Answer 22

sometimes members of the same species are split into different species because they look different

eg. dogs! All the different breeds look very different, but they’re all one species and can breed with each other

Question 23

Biological Species Concept=

Answer 23

defines a species as the group of organisms which can interbreed

addresses cryptic species issue of morphological species concept

this is the concept we use for dogs

Very hard to apply this concept sometimes, especially for extinct species

Question 24

For any 2 individuals to reproduce, the organisms need to live in the same ___ at the same ___, but do not have to look the same

Answer 24

place
time

Question 25

population=

Answer 25

a group of animals in the same geographic area that can potentially mate

Question 26

which is true?

a. One or more species make up a population

b. One or more populations make up a species

Answer 26

b. One or more populations make up a species

some live in different places, but are still the same species

Question 27

t/f

sometimes it comes down the the judgement of a scientist as to whether or not something is a new species

Answer 27

true

especially if we’re only dealing with fragment remains

Question 28

taxonomy=

Answer 28

the naming of species