Animal Classification Vocabulary
Amphibian a cold-blooded vertebrate that breathes with gills when young and with lungs as an adult; must return to the water to lay eggs and this group includes frogs, toads, salamanders, etc.
Animalia (Animal) taxonomic kingdom comprising of all living or extinct animals
Arthropod a phylum of invertebrates that have a segmented body, jointed limbs, and usually a hard outer shell; includes insects, spiders and crustaceans
Birds a warm-blooded vertebrate that has a body covered with feathers, has wings, and lays a hard-shelled egg
Binomial nomenclature Karl Linnaeus’ system of using two Latin names to describe an organism’s genus and species
Fish a cold-blooded, aquatic vertebrate that has gills, fins, and a body covered with scales
Fungi a diverse kingdom of single-celled or multicellular organisms that live by decomposing and absorbing the organic material in which they grow; includes mushrooms, molds, mildews, and yeasts
Invertebrate animal without a backbone
Kingdom the most general taxonomic level and contains the most types of organisms ; includes Kingdom Animalia, Kingdom Plantae, Kingdom Fungi, Kingdom Protista, and Kingdom Monera
Mammal a warm-blooded vertebrate that has hair or fur, gives birth to live young and nourishes its young with milk
Monera kingdom of single-celled, microscopic, organisms, which includes bacteria and blue-green algae
Phylum the second largest taxonomic level, just below kingdom; arthropods, chordates, and mollusks are phyla
Plantae (Plant) kingdom of multicellular organisms that typically produce their own food by photosynthesis
Protista kingdom of single-celled or multi-celled organisms that include amoebas, euglenas, and algae
Reptile cold-blooded usually egg-laying vertebrates, such as snakes, lizards, crocodiles, turtles, or dinosaurs, that have an external covering of scales and breathes with lungs
Species most specific taxonomic level and contains only one type of organism
Taxonomy science of naming and classifying organisms based on their similarities and differences
Vertebrate animal with a backbone