Name_____________________________________Date______________Hour______
Bio 134
17.1 The History of Classification
p. 484 - 489
Essential Question
Main Idea
Biologists use a system of classification to organize
information about the diversity of living things
Classifcation
The grouping of objects or organisms based on a set
of criteria
How did Aristotle classify
organisms?
As either animals or plants
How did Aristotle classify
animals?
* As bloodless or red-blooded
* Then according to their habitats and morphology
How did Aristotle classify
plants?
By average size and structure as either trees, shrubs, or
herbs
How was Linnaeus’s system
different from Ariostotle’s?
Linnaeus formalized it into a scientific study
Taxonomy
Discipline of Biology primarily concerned with
identifying, naming, and classsifying species based on
natural relationships
What is systematics?
Study of biological diversity with an emphasis on
evolutionary history
Binomial Nomenclature
Gives each species a scientific name that has 2 parts
First part of a binomial name
The Genus
refers to:
Specific Epithet or species name
Second part of a binomial
name refers to:
Latin
What language is used for
basis of binominal names?
It is an unchanging language and has been the
language of science and education
Why?
Give 2 reasons scientists use
scientific names:
1
Common names vary in their use
ex. Cardinal, Redbird, Northern Cardinal
2 Common names can be misleading
What are the 4 rules of writing
scientific names:
1
1st letter of the genus is always CAPITALIZED, the rest is
lowercase
2 Scientific names should be italicized if printed
3 Scientific names should be underlined if written by
hand
4 After scientific name has been written competely,
the genus name will be abbreviated to the first letter
in later appearances
Write the following scientific
names correctly:
Genus: balenopora,
Blue Whale
species: physalis
Genus: felis
Domestic cat
species: catus
Genus: canis
species: latrans
Coyote
Genus: canis
species: lupus
Wolf
Genus: homo
species: sapien
How has the classification of
organisms changed more
recently?
Scientists have added morphological, behavioral,
and evolutionary characteristics to classification
systems
Taxon
* Named group of organisms
* The broader the characteristics, the more species
the taxon contains
ex. mammals are higher taxon than felines, therefore
mammals have more members than felines
Genus
Group of species that are closely related and share
a common ancestor
Family
Next higher taxon, consisting of similar related genera
Order
contains related families
Class
contains related orders
Phylum
contains related classes
Kingdom
contains related phylum
Domain
contains one or more kingdoms, broadest of all taxa
What is a dichotomous key?
A key based on a series of choices between
alternate characteristics