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Intro To Biology > 4.3 Taxonomy and the Diversity of Life > Flashcards

4.3 Taxonomy and the Diversity of Life Flashcards

(68 cards)

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1
Q

Taxonomy

A

Names and organizes species based on their similarities

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2
Q

Biological systematics

A

Field that incorporates taxonomy, variation among populations, and relationships among organisms over time, to provide insight into evolutionary history of life

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3
Q

Morphology

A

Branch of biology that studies the form of organisms and relationships between their structures

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4
Q

Historical taxa

A

From largest to smallest taxon
- Kingdom
- Phylum (phyla)
- Class
- Order
- Family
- Genus (genera)
- Species

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5
Q

Recently added taxa

A

Domain (above kingdom)

Superfamily or subspecies (below species)

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6
Q

Binomial nomenclature

A

Combination of genus and species

Genus names are unique but may be used once in each kingdom

Species epithet can be used once per genus

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7
Q

Species epithet

A

Second word in the scientific name of binomial nomenclature

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7
Q

Biological species concept

A

Developed by Theodorakis Dobzhansky a Russian-American geneticist, and Ernst Mayr, a German evolutionary biologist in separate publications in 1937 and 1942

Species is a reproductive community of populations (reproductively isolated from others) that occupies a specific niche in nature

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7
Q

Criticism of biological species concept

A
  • Doesn’t address extinct species
  • no way to identify changes in lineage over time
  • No way of separating a living species from its ancestors
  • Excludes asexually reproducing species
  • Reproductive isolating mechanisms can disappear over time and allow two closely related species to interbreed
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7
Q

Evolutionary species concept

A
  • Doesn’t address extinct species
  • no way to identify changes in lineage over time
  • No way of separating a living species from its ancestors
  • Excludes asexually reproducing species
  • Reproductive isolating mechanisms can disappear over time and allow two closely related species to interbreed
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8
Q

Phylogenetic species concept

A

Similar to evolutionary species concept but considers two genetically similar populations as different species when they are geographically isolated from one another and each population carries unique morphological differences

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9
Q

Homologous characters

A

Derived from a common ancestor

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10
Q

Homoplastic characters

A

Analogues that evolve independently, usually through convergent evolution due to similar selective pressures

Don’t represent shared ancestry

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11
Q

Clade

A

(Or branch)

Group of species that share a derived character

A group containing a common ancestor and all of its descendants, monopyhyletic group

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12
Q

Derived character

A

Trait that differs from the ancestral state

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13
Q

Synapomorphies

A

Shared, derived characters

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14
Q

Cladogram

A

Used to depict the evolutionary relationships among different species or groups

Lesser derived clades are basal groups of lower taxa placed nearer to root

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15
Q

Sister taxa

A

Neighboring groups, closely related

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16
Q

Outgroup

A

Single species/group that’s related to all the others in the tree but still distinct

Used to determine ancestral character states

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17
Q

Phylogram

A

(Or phylogenic tree) conceptually and visually similar to a cladogram but the lengths of its branches correspond with time

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18
Q

Monophyletic taxon

A

Includes all the members of a group as well as their most recent common ancestor, a clade

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19
Q

Paraphyletic taxon

A

Contains a common ancestor but leaves out some of its descendants

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20
Q

Polyphyletic taxon

A

Doesn’t include the common ancestor to all of its members

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21
Q

Willi Hennig

A

(1913-1976) pushed for the use of cladistics

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22
Cladistics
(or phylogenetic systematics) Idea that all recognized taxa should be monophyletic
23
Traditional taxonomies
Continue to accept some paraphyletic groupings as valid taxa on top of monophyletic taxon
24
Molecular systematics
The use of DNA and proteins in the identification and classification of species
25
DNA barcoding
Method of identifying species based on sequence of a standard section of DNA Mitochondrial gene for cytochrome c oxidase subunit 1, frequently used
26
Morphometric studies
Constructing phylogenies using morphology
27
Cryptic species
Appear identical to one another but are different at a genetic level and unable to breed with each other
28
Autotrophs
Produce own food using photosynthesis or chemosynthesis (chemical energy)
29
Heterotrophs
Ingest other organisms for their nutrition
30
Bacillus
Rod-shaped bacteria
31
Coccus
Ball-shaped bacteria
32
Spirillum
Spiral-shaped bacteria
33
Gram-positive bacteria
Have thick outer cell wall, mostly made of cross-linked peptidoglycan along with a small amount of lipoteichoic acids that anchor the cell wall to the plasma membrane, stain purple
34
Gram-negative bacteria
Cell wall contains a thinner layer of peptidoglycan surrounded by an outer membrane of lipopolysaccharides and lipoproteins structurally similar to lipid bilayer of plasma membrane but chemically distinct, stain pink
35
Bacteria phyla
- Chlamydia - Proteobacteria - Cyanobacteria - Spirochetes - Gram-positive bacteria
36
Archaea
Prokaryotic microorganisms lack membrane-bound organelles and nuclear envelope Cell walls lack peptidoglycan, cell membranes have a different structure Some of their genes have introns differ in DNA replication and gene expression known for living in extreme or inhospitable environments
37
Archaea phyla
- euryarchaeota - crenarchaeota - nanoarchaeota - korarchaeota
38
Methanogens
Type of euryarchaeota, live in anaerobic conditions Metabolize hydrogen and carbon dioxide into methane gas
39
Halobacteria
Type of eurychaeota, live in very salty environments
40
Crenarchaeota
Bacteria phylum, includes many thermophiles, some are sulfur-based autotrophs
41
Nanoarchaeota
Bacteria phylum, only one identified species Nanoarchaeum equitans
42
Korarchaeota
Bacteria phylum, thought to be one of the most primitive types of organisms
43
Traditional eukaryotic kingdoms
- Animals - Plants - Fungi - Protists
44
Protista
Eukaryotic kingdom, definition debated by scientists Contains mostly unicellular and less complex eukaryotes Possess a nucleus and specialized organelles Paraphyletic, invalid taxon Historically defined as any eukaryote that isn’t plant, animal, of fungus Can be autotrophic, heterotrophic, saprotrophic or mixotrophic Live in wet environments Can form colonies that have simple division of labor among different cell types Many can switch between asexual and sexual reproduction Sexual reproduction can be associated with the formation of protective cysts that are resistant to environmental extremes
45
Saprotrophic
Acquiring dissolved nutrients from their surroundings
46
Mixotrophic
Can be autotrophic or heterotrophic depending on availability of nutrients
47
Protist groups
- Cliliates - Flagellates - Amoebas
48
Ciliate protisits
Move by waving hair-like cilia to propel through water
49
Flagellate protists
Move by rotating one or more long flagella
50
Amoeboid protists
Move using pseudopods
51
Pseudopods
Fingerlike projections of cytoplasm
52
Plantae
Eukaryotic kingdom, include red and green algae, bryophytes, and vascular plants
53
Fungi
Eukaryotic kingdom, include both unicellular and multicellular organisms Can reproduce both sexually or asexually Non-vascular and non-moving Heterotrophic, typically saprobes/saprophytes Can break down cellulose or lignin, Some can even break down jet fuel and useful in bioremediation Possess cell wall composed of chitin More closely related to animals than plants Some posses accessory genomic structure analogous to bacterial plasmids
54
Traditional fungi groups
- Ascomycota (sac fungi) - Basidiomycota (club fungi) - Chytridiomycota (chytrids) - Zygomycota (zygomycetes) *the last two “lower fungi” are not monophyletic
55
Mycologists
Scientists who study fungi
56
Fungi seven monophyletic groups
Updated in 2007 - Microsporidia - Blastocladiomycota - Neocallimastigomycota - Chytridiomycota - Glomeromycota - Basidiomycota - Ascomycota
57
Microsporidia
Used to be considered protists buy are now understood to be fungi Group of obligate intracellular parasites of animals, frequently insects Lack mitochondria but retain mitochondrial genes in genome Typically only cause disease in immunocompromised individuals.
58
Blastocladiomycota, Neocallimastigomycota, Chytridiomycota
Fungi previously classified as chytrids Share ancestral trait of motile, flagellated zoospores Some have been linked to mass die-offs of amphibians Some are plant pathogens
59
Glomeromycota
Small group of asexual plant symbiont fungi Form mutualisms with many species of trees and herbaceous plants Most form arbuscular mycorrhizae Hyphae associate with plant roots and exchange nutrients Plants provide fungus with carbon and fungus provides plant with minerals from soil
60
Basidiomycota, Ascomycota
Often called the Dikaryka or higher fungi Contain morels, truffles, mushrooms, toadstools, rusts, and shelf fungi
61
Animalia
Eukaryotic kingdom, multi-cellular heterotrophs Except for sponges, animal cells are organized into tissues Muscle tissue, nervous tissue, and lack of cell walls allow for active movement Most reproduce sexually Unique embryonic development, zygote produces a blastula then a gastrula About 35 recognized animal phyla Most are invertebrates
62
Chordata
Animal phylum Contains vertebrate animals About 56,000 species
63
Arthropoda
Most diverse animal phylum Contains more that 1 million species of insects, crustaceans, and arachnids
64
Mollusks
Second-most diverse animal phylum, consists of about 110,000 species
65
Micrognathozoa
Smallest animal phylum, contains a single species discovered in 1994 on Disko Island in Greenland

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