Diversity in the Living World

Flashcards covering vocabulary related to the diversity in the living world, focusing on concepts in biology, taxonomy, and classification.

Biology

The science of life forms and living processes.

Biodiversity

The number and types of organisms present on earth, generally between 1.7 to 1.8 million identified species.

Taxonomy

The science of classification of organisms based on their characteristics.

Nomenclature

The process of naming living organisms to ensure consistent identification.

Binomial nomenclature

A naming system that gives each organism a two-part name, consisting of the genus and species.

Species

A group of individual organisms with fundamental similarities and can be distinguished from other groups.

Genus

A category that comprises a group of related species with more characters in common than species of other genera.

Family

A category that includes related genera with fewer similarities compared to species and genus.

Order

A higher taxonomic category that includes a group of families displaying some similar characters.

Class

A taxonomic category that includes related orders.

Phylum

A higher category that groups related classes of animals or plants.

Kingdom

The highest taxonomic category that includes all living organisms, such as Kingdom Animalia and Kingdom Plantae.

Systematics

A branch of biology that deals with the classification and relationships among living organisms.

Ernst Mayr

An influential evolutionary biologist who contributed to the understanding of species diversity and classification.

Taxonomic categories

Hierarchical ranks used in classification, including species, genus, family, order, class, phylum, and kingdom.

Linnaean system

A classification system developed by Carl Linnaeus that is the basis for modern taxonomy.

Biology is the science of __ forms and living processes.

life

The number and types of organisms present on earth is referred to as __.

biodiversity

The science of classification of organisms based on their __ is known as taxonomy.

characteristics

The process of naming living organisms is called __.

nomenclature

A naming system that gives each organism a two-part name is known as __ nomenclature.

binomial

A __ is a group of individual organisms with fundamental similarities.

species

A category that comprises a group of related species is called __.

genus

A category that includes related genera is referred to as __.

family

A higher taxonomic category that includes a group of families is known as __.

order

The highest taxonomic category encompassing all living organisms is the __