Important points to remember

• Classification of living beings: The process of dividing living beings into groups and subgroups according to their similar and dissimilar properties is called classification of living beings.

• Importance of classification

1. It helps to find the facts about the evolution of organism.

2. It helps to study the living beings in a short time.

3. It makes it easy to give scientific name of living beings.

4. It describes the natural interrelationship of living beings.

• Binomial system of nomenclature : The way of giving generic names and specific names to an organism is called the binomial system of nomenclature.

• Father of Modern Taxonomy: Carolus Linnaeus is known as the father of Modern Taxonomy because he was the first man to study classification and scientific nomenclature of living beings in detail.

• Genus: The group of species having maximum similar characteristics is called genus. For example tiger and lion belong to a similar genus called Panthera, similarly Dpg, Jackal, Wolf etc belongs to genus Canis.

• Species: A group of similar organisms having ability of reproduction to each other is known as species. For example, Tiger belongs to species tigris and Lion belongs to species leo. 

• Shortcoming of two kingdom system

1. Prokaryotes and eukaryotes are not clearly distinct.

2. Unicellular and multicellular organism are not separated.

3. Photosynthetic and non-photosynthetic are not clearly seperated.

4. This system cannot include all living beings properly.

• Five kingdoms: Monera, Protesta, Fungi, Plantee, animalia

• Characteristics of Monera:

1. They are unicellular.

2. They do not have nucleus.

3. They have prokaryotic cells.

4. They are  parasitic, saprophytic, symbiotic or autrotrophic.

• Characteristics of Protista:

1. They are unicellular.

2. They have eukaryotic cells.

3. They have nucleus.

4. They have locomotor organs like pseudopodia, cilia and flagella

• Characteristics of Fungi:

1. They are unicellular or multicellular.

2. The are often saprophytic (as they take food from dead or decaying matter)

3. Their bodies are thalloid ( root, stem and leaf are not differentiated)

4. They store food in the form of glycogen.

• Types of fungi: 

1. Saprotrophic (eg. mucor, mushroom, penicillium)

2. Parasitic (eg. Puccinia, Taphrina)

3. Symbiotic (eg. lichens)

Exercise

1. Tick the correct answer:

i) Which kingdom does Blue green algae belong to ?

ii) What characteristic makes the Euglena different from other animals?

iii) Who is the founder of the binomial system of nomenclature ?

iv) Which kingdom  does  the organism without a definite nucleus in their cell belong to ?

v) Which one of the following is the example of prokaryotic microorganism?

2. Give reason.

a) The five kingdom system is more appropriate and scientific than the two kingdom system for organisms.

b) Fungi are also called saprophytes.

c) Monera re considered as more advanced than Protista.

3. Write differences between;

a) Prokaryotes and Eukaryotes