1. Organizing Life’s Diversity

2. Terminology
Classification – the grouping of objects or information based on similarities.
(ie. organizing your music collection)
Taxonomy – the branch of biology that groups and names organisms based on studies of their different characteristics.

3. Who developed the system of classification?
Aristotle developed the first widely accepted system of biological classification
Two groups: Plants and Animals
Carolus Linnaeus developed classification system based on physical and structural similarities of organisms which is still used today and includes classification based on structural similarities and evolutionary relationships of species.

4. How do we name organisms?
Binomial Nomenclature – Two word naming, developed by Linnaeus to identify species
First word = genus
Second word = species
(ie. Homo sapiens = modern humans)
Note: Scientific names are always written in italics or underlined

5. Today’s phylogenetic classification uses a hierarchy of taxa to classify organisms.
From largest to smallest (A mnemonic to help you remember)
Kingdom King
Phylum Phillip Another way to help you
Class Came remember the order, sing t
Order Over groups to the tune of
Family For “Yankee Doodle.”
Genus Green
Species Silk

6. The phylogeny for a Bobcat is: Kingdom Animalia :
Phylum Chordata
Class Mammalia
Order Carnivora
Family Felidae
Genus Lynx
Speices Lynx rufus

7. What are the six kingdoms?

8. Evolutionary History
Phylogeny describes the evolutionary history of a related group of species
All organisms on Earth evolved from a single ancestor
Life on earth began about 3.5 billion years ago; since that time, new species have emerged, lived and died out
New species evolve from pre-existing species

9. Evidence for the relationships between living things
Through fossil evidence, physical similarities, and molecular similarities between ancient species and modern species have been found.
Physical and molecular similarities between diverse species has also been found.

10. How do we classify living things based on evolutionary information?
Cladistics – a type of classification system based on phylogeny (evolutionary history)
Scientists use a cladogram to diagram evolutionary relationships of traits

11. Phylogeny of Humans

12. Phylogeny of Humans