BIOLOGY BIOLOGICAL CLASSIFICATION
Biological Classification
The purpose of biological classification is to organise the vast number of species of organisms into
categories so that they are easy to remember and study.
Introduction to Biological Classification
Various classification systems have been proposed from time to time by different scientists.
Classification System Description
Two Kingdom Classification • Linnaeus divided all organisms into two
groups – plants and animals.
• The criterion for this classification was the
presence or absence of a cell wall.
Three Kingdom Classification • Haeckel proposed it.
• He divided unicellular organisms, algae and
fungi from the other organisms.
Four Kingdom Classification • Copeland proposed it.
• He placed bacteria under a separate
Kingdom named Monera.
Five Kingdom Classification R. H. Whittaker classified organisms into five
kingdoms, namely, Monera, Protista,
Plantae, Fungi and Animalia
Five Kingdom Classification System
The criteria used by R. H. Whittaker for five kingdom classification is
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BIOLOGY BIOLOGICAL CLASSIFICATION
Cell
Structure
Phylogenetic Thallus/Body
Relationship Organisation
Criteria for Five
Kingdom
Classification
Mode of Mode of
Reproduction Nutrition
Kingdom Monera
• This Kingdom includes prokaryotes.
• They are present in extreme habitats such as hot springs, deserts, snow, deep oceans and acidic and
alkaline environments.
Features
• Cell wall is made of peptidoglycan (Structure composed of polysaccharides and amino acids).
• Membrane-bound cell organelles are absent.
• Organisms show varied mode of nutrition. Some organisms show autotrophic and some show
heterotrophic mode of nutrition.
Shapes of Bactria
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Archaebacteria
• They are considered one of the most primitive forms.
• They live in harsh and extreme habitats.
• The component of the cell is different than the other bacteria.
• Three groups of archaebacteria are o Methangoens: They are present in the guts of ruminant animals.
They are used for the production of biogas from the dung of animals.
o Halophiles: They are found in salt pans, sea and salted fish.
o Thermoacidophiles: They are found in hot springs.
Eubacteria
• Presence of the cell wall and a flagellum are the characteristic features.
• Based on the mode of nutrition, eubacteria are divided into two categories:
Eubacteria
Autotrophic Heterotrophic
Photosynthetic Parasitic
Chemosynthetic Saprophytic
Autotrophic Bacteria Heterotrophic Bacteria
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Photosynthetic Bacteria Chemosynthetic Bacteria
They oxidise inorganic
Cyanobacteria are substances such as Majority of them are the
photosynthetic autotrophs. amino acids, nitrites and decomposers.
nitrates
Unicellular, colonial or They help in recycling They impact human life in a good
filamentous. nitrogen, sulphur and iron. and bad way.
They show the presence of The energy released during Some bacteria are useful in
chlorophyll a like plants this process is used for antibody production, nitrogen
ATP production. fixation.
They are also called Some pathogens cause diseases in
-
bluegreen algae. plants, animals and humans.
They form blooms called
algal blooms on polluted - -
water bodies.
Nostoc and Anabaena fix
- -
atmospheric nitrogen.
Mycoplasma
• Simplest and smallest prokaryotes.
• The cell wall is absent, and the organisms can change their shape.
• They can survive without oxygen.
• They cause diseases in humans, animals and plants.
Kingdom Protista
Kingdom Protista includes all unicellular eukaryotic organisms.
Features
• Aquatic organisms
• They show the presence of well-defined nucleus and membrane bound cell organelles.
• Some protistans have flagella and some have cilia.
• Reproduction is either by asexual or sexual method.
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BIOLOGY BIOLOGICAL CLASSIFICATION
Protista
Chrysophytes Dinoflagellates Euglenoids Slime Moulds Protozoans
Chrysophytes
• This group includes diatoms and golden algae.
• They are found in fresh water as well as marine water.
• They are photosynthetic.
• They float in water currents.
• In diatoms, the cell wall forms two overlapping shells which fit together like in a soap box.
• The cell walls are also embedded with the silica, which makes them indestructible.
• Many diatoms leave behind their cell wall deposits. The accumulation of these deposits over billions of
years is called diatomaceous earth.
• Diatomaceous earth is polishing, filtration of oils and syrups.
• Example: Navicula
Dinoflagellates
• They are marine.
• They are photosynthetic.
• The cell wall shows the presence of stiff cellulose plates.
• Most of the dinoflagellates have two flagella.
• Depending on the presence of pigments, they appear yellow, green, brown, red or blue.
• Dinoflagellate names Gonyaulax multiply rapidly which give red colour to sea. This is called red tide.
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BIOLOGY BIOLOGICAL CLASSIFICATION
Euglenoids
• These organisms are found fresh stagnant water.
• They are photosynthetic. If there is not sunlight, they act as heterotrophs.
• Cell wall absent. A protein rich layer called pellicle is present.
• Two flagella are present.
• Example: Euglena
Slime Moulds
• Slime moulds possess characteristics like animals and fungi.
• They are saprophytic.
• They cell wall is absent.
• In favourable conditions, they form an aggregation called plasmodium.
• During unfavourable conditions, plasmodium form fruiting bodies which bear spores which can survive
for many years.
• Example: Physarum
Protozoans
• Protozoans are heterotrophs.
• They are either parasites or predators.
• There are four groups of protozoans.
Amoeboid Protozoans Flagellated Protozoans Ciliated Protozoans Sporozoans
Aquatic organisms These organisms have
Found in fresh water,
Free-living or infectious spore-like
sea water and moist
parasitic stage in their life cycle.
soil
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Cilia are present, Example: Plasmodium
They capture prey with hence, these causes malaria.
the help of Flagella are present. organisms move
pseudopodia. actively.
Parasitic forms cause A cavity called gullet -
Some are also
diseases. opens outside to the
parasites. cell surface.
Example:
Example: Entamoeba
Trypanosoma
Marine amoeboid - Example: Paramoecium -
protozoans show the
presence of silica
shells.
Kingdom Fungi
• It is a unique kingdom of eukaryotic, heterotrophic organisms.
• They grow in warm and humid places. They are found everywhere, i.e. air, water, soil, on animals and
plants.
Features
• The body is made of a network of thread-like structures called hyphae.
• This network is called mycelium.
• In some fungi, the hyphae are continuous and are filled with multi-nucleated cytoplasm. Such hyphae
are called coenocytic hyphae.
• In some fungi, there are cross walls present between the hyphae.
• The cell walls are composed of chitin and polysaccharides. Fungi show different modes of nutrition.
Modes of Nutrition in Fungi
Symbionts - Form
Saprophytic - Absorb Parasitic - Depend on living
association with some other
organic matter from the plants and animals for food
substratum. and shelter and harm them. living entity for mutual
benefit.
Example: Mushroom Example: Mucor
Example: Lichens
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BIOLOGY BIOLOGICAL CLASSIFICATION
• Vegetative reproduction in fungi takes place by fragmentation, fission and budding.
• Asexual reproduction is spores such as conidia, sproangiospores or zoospores.
• Sexual reproduction is by oospores, ascospores and basidiospores.
• Sexual reproduction in fungi involves the following three steps:
Plasmogamy
• Protoplasm of two gametes mix with each other.
Karyogamy
• Two nuclei of the dikaryotic cell fuse with each other.
Spore formation
• Meiosis takes place in the zygote forming haploid spores.
• When two compatible mating types of fungi and fuse, they immediately result in diploid cell.
• But in some fungi, an intermediate stage called dikaryon stage occurs. In this stage one cell is with two
nuclei.
• Later the two nuclei fuse top form a diploid cell.
Classes of Fungi
Phycomycetes Ascomycetes Basidiomycetes Deuteromycetes
Phycomycetes Ascomycetes Basidiomycetes Deuteromycetes
Aquatic habitat or on Saprophytic, Grow in soils, wood Saprophytic or
decaying wood in moist decomposers, parasitic and as parasites in parasitic
and damp places or as or coprophilous (grow plant bodies.
obligate parasites on on cow dung)
plants.
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BIOLOGY BIOLOGICAL CLASSIFICATION
Mycelium is aseptate Mycelium is branched Mycelium is Mycelium is
and coenocytic. and septate. branched and branched and
septate. septate.
Asexual reproduction • Asexual reproduction Vegetative Asexual
takes place by occurs by conidia reproduction takes reproduction takes
zoospores or which are produced on place by place by conidia.
aplanospores. conidiophores. fragmentation.
• Yeast reproduces by
budding.
Sexual reproduction Sexual reproduction Sexual Sexual
occurs by zygospores takes place by reproduction is by reproduction is
which are isogamous or ascospores which are the fusion of two either absent or yet
anisogamous or produced in asci. somatic cells. to be discovered.
oogamous.
Examples: Rhizopus, Examples: Yeast, Examples: Examples:
Albugo Aspergillus Agaricus, Puccinia Alternaria,
Trichoderma
Rhizopus Yeast Agaricus Alternaria
Albugo cause white rust Yeast is used in baking Agaricus is an edible Alternaria causes
disease in plants. industry fungus. early blight of potato
and tomato.
Kingdom Plantae
• Kingdom Plantae includes all plants.
• Almost all plants are autotrophic, but some are heterotrophic, for example, Venus fly trap and
bladderwort are insectivorous plants.
• Some plants are parasitic too. Example: Cuscuta
• The plant cells contain a cell wall made of cellulose.
• Cells of photosynthetic plants contain the photosynthetic pigment called chlorophyll.
• The life cycle of plants has two phases—a diploid sporophytic phase and a haploid gametophytic
phase which alternate with each other. This phenomenon is called alternation of generations.
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BIOLOGY BIOLOGICAL CLASSIFICATION
Kingdom Animalia
• Kingdom Animalia includes all heterotrophic, eukaryotic, multicellular organisms.
• They lack a cell wall and chlorophyll.
• They depend on plants for food directly or indirectly.
• The food is digested inside the body cavity.
• Nutrition is holozoic.
• Animals exhibit a definite growth pattern.
• Most of the animals exhibit embryonic development after fertilisation
Viruses
• The viruses are non-cellular organisms.
• They have inert crystalline structure outside the living cell.
• Viruses are obligate parasites.
• When they infect a living cell, they replicate inside the host cells and kill the host cell.
• The name virus was coined by Dmitri J. Iwanowsky.
• Martinus Beijerinck called virus ‘Contagium vivum fluidum’ and proved
that it is infectious.
• The outer covering of the virus is called capsid which is made of proteins subunit called capsomeres.
Capsid encloses either DNA or RNA.
• Viruses which infect plants have single stranded RNA.
• Viruses which infect animals have either single stranded or double stranded RNA or double stranded
DNA.
• Viruses or bacteriophages which infect bacteria have double stranded DNA.
Viroids
• Viroids are smaller than viruses.
• They were discovered by T.O. Diener in 1971.
• They are infectious RNA particles.
• They lack protein coat.
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• They are obligate parasites and cause diseases in plants.
• Viroids have a low molecular weight.
• Potato spindle tuber disease (PSTD) is caused by viroids.
Lichens
• Lichen is the symbiotic association between an alga and a fungus.
• The algal component is known as phycobiont and the fungal component is called mycobiont.
• Phycobiont is autotrophic and mycobiont is heterotrophic.
• Algae prepare food for the fungi and the fungi provide shelter to the algae and absorb minerals and
water for the algae.
• Lichens cannot tolerate sulphur dioxide and hence are considered pollution indicators.
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