Why is classification important to biology

How does one remember classification of organisms? What classification is a worm? How does domain eukarya differ from domain bacteria and domain archaea? What are some examples of domain archaea?

How do domain archaea and domain bacteria differ? Such data can include input from almost all fields of science, including molecular biology, field studies, collections, morphological analysis, genetics, behavioral studies, chemistry, and anatomy. A systematic study, at its best, generates a very large amount of data about organisms which can then be used to determine the range of similarities and differences between them.

The appropriate groups Taxonomy is a theoretical branch of biology in which taxonomists try to devise appropriate groups into which they can unambiguously place all living things. All taxonomies start from first principles; now do the groups relate to one another? Is it a structural relationship, evolutionary relationship, or even a ecological relationship? Taxonomies also have rules and procedures that must be followed during their use. All organisms in Eukarya often referred to as eukaryotes have DNA contained in a nucleus rather than in the cytoplasm like the domains Prokarya and Archaea.

Next is the kingdom Animalia box. Everything in this box must consume other organisms to survive. Other kingdoms within Eukarya, like the kingdom Plantae, have organisms that can make their own food.

Within the kingdom Animalia box, there are several other boxes, each labeled as a different phylum. One is the phylum Chordata box. This box contains everything that has a notochord, gill slits, and a dorsal nerve cord. The phylum Chordata box contains many classes, one of which is the class Aves. Aves are the birds, with feathers and hollow bones. The class Aves box includes the box labeled order Anseriformes, the waterfowl that are grouped together due to their webbed front toes.

The order Anseriformes box contains two family boxes. One of these is the family Anatidae—the swans, ducks, and geese that have a broad bill, a keeled sternum, and other unique features. The family Anatida box contains the genus Branta. Geese in the genus Branta are noted for bold plumage and legs and bills that are black in color. The genus box Branta holds the species sandvicensis. By examining each level of classification, it becomes clear that Branta sandvicensis is a Hawaiian goose with a black broad bill, legs, webbed toes, feathers, hollow bones, and a notochord.

It must also eat other things. However, no other organism on earth is given the genus Branta and the species sandvicensis. The classification system tells something about the evolutionary relationships among species. Moving down through each level of classification, the number of species in the group decreases Table 1. Two species within the same genus likely share a recent common ancestor in their evolutionary history. These two species would be more closely related to each other than two species classified into different families.

The levels of classification might also provide information on the evolutionary history of a species or other taxonomic group. Such is the case with the coelocanths Latimera spp. West Indian ocean coelacanth Latimeria chalumnae ; Fig. They are also the only living members of their family Latimeriidae and of their order Coelacanthiformes. All other species belonging to these levels of classification are now extinct. Coelacanths are also some of the very few surviving fish species within the class Sarcopterygii, a group known as the lobe-finned fishes.

All four-limbed vertebrate animals—amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals—also belong to class Sarcopterygii. The coelacanths, and the six species of lung fish, are more closely related to each other and to the four-limed vertebrates than to other fishes.

For this reason, the coelacanth offers a rare glimpse into the evolutionary history of vertebrate animals and their limb-development.

Classification systems are used in many ways. Compare the classifications shown in Fig. Most people know something about water vehicles, so it is not necessary to say that a speedboat has a motor. In the same way, there is general knowledge that a tuna is classified as a fish. So, a tuna can be described without needing to say that it is a fish because.

Thus, if we make the statement that a skipjack tuna is caught while fishing in a speedboat, many details can be left out of the description because there is general, underlying knowledge of the classification of boats and tuna.

This use of italics is part of the rules that the scientific community has developed for the naming of organisms. There are three main codes that govern the naming of organisms. Scientific names are useful outside of science. Common names vary from place to place, and the scientific nomenclature system helps eliminate confusion. This example also brings up another problem with common names. Notice that one of the common names for this fish uses the word dolphin, which is also the common name of a marine mammal.

Scientific names are also valuable in navigating the classification system. The classification system provides great deal of information about the characteristics of organisms. Using scientific names can therefore act as a shorthand method for describing a plant or animal.

For example, following a whale stranding along the Maui coastline, an observer might record this information:. This is all information needed to identify the organism and avoid mixing it up with other similar organisms. Of course, when reporting the mammal stranding to her supervisor, the observer will report stranding of a Megaptera novaeangliae , which is the species name that describes the humpback whale. The scientific name Megaptera novaeangliae encompasses all of the described features.

Most binomial names are Latin terms. However, some binomial names are Greek, and some are derived from the names of their discoverers or other scientists. When Carl Linneaus developed his classification system, almost all educated people were trained in Latin and Greek. No matter what country they came from, people could communicate with one another using these languages.

Because Latin and Greek were the common languages of scientists, Latin and Greek were used to develop a universal classification system. The more similar the molecules, the more closely related the species. This is referred to as natural classification. Developments in biochemistry , the study of the processes that occur inside cells, have allowed us to work out how similar organisms are on a molecular level, rather than just using characteristics that can be seen with our eyes or a microscope.

For example, we can compare the structure of the proteins used in aerobic respiration between organisms to see how similar they are. Comparing the DNA sequences of different organisms has allowed the relationships of organisms to one another to be explored even further. Species that are more closely related are likely to have fewer differences in the sequence of their DNA bases.