Types of Classification Systems

With an understanding of classification, taxonomy, and systematics, we can now

examine the different types of classifications systems that are available. For
instance, you can classify organisms according to their structure, placing organisms
that look similar in the same group. Alternatively, you can classify organisms
according to their evolutionary history, placing organisms that have a shared
ancestry in the same group. These two approaches are referred to as phenetics and
cladistics and are defined as follows:
For centuries, the practice of naming and classifying living organisms into groups
has been an integral part of the study of nature. Aristotle (384BC-322BC) developed
the first known method of classifying organisms, grouping organisms by their means
of transport such as air, land, and water. A number of other naturalists followed with
other classification systems. But it was Swedish botanist, Carolus (Carl) Linnaeus
(1707-1778) that is considered to be the pioneer of modern taxonomy.

In his book Systema Naturae, first published in 1735, Carl Linnaeus introduced a
rather clever way to classify and name organisms. This system, now referred to as
Linnaean taxonomy, has been used to varying extents, ever since.

In general, Linnaean taxonomy uses phenetics to classify organisms. This means it

relies on physical characteristics or other observable traits to classify organisms and
does consider the evolutionary history of those organisms. But keep in mind that
similar physical characteristics are often the product of shared evolutionary history,
so Linnaean taxonomy (or phenetics) sometimes reflects the evolutionary
background of a group of organisms.

So, for example, in the case of the red fox the binomial name is Vulpes vulpes, but
some genetic data suggest the populations in Europe and North America are
sufficiently different to be classed at least as separate subspecies; those in Europe
are Vulpes vulpes vulpes (the originally described population is given the species
name as the subspecies and we call this the nominate subspecies), while those in
North America are Vulpes vulpes fulva.

Kingdoms fungi (moulds, mushrooms, yeast)

The first division of living things in the protists (Amoeba, Chlorella and
classification system is to put them Plasmodium)
into one of five kingdoms. The five prokaryotes (bacteria, blue-green
kingdoms are: algae)
animals (all multicellular animals) Further divisions:
plants (all green plants) Phylum follows Kingdoms and has
many different organisms, including
three examples below:
Chordata, which have backbones Orders are broken down into families.
Here are a few examples of which
Arthropod, which have jointed legs and
carnivores can be divided into:
an exoskeleton
Canidae - dogs
Annelids, which are segmented worms
Felidae - cats
Class is an additional sub-division,
which for example, results in the Genus, the Felidae family can be
Chordata phylum being divided into: further sub-divided into four genus
examples:
Mammals
Acinonyx - cheetah
Birds
Panthera - lion and tiger
Amphibians
Neofelis - clouded leopard
Fish
Felis - domestic cats
Reptiles
Order follows class and as an Species is the final classification stage,
example, mammals can be further and the genus Panthera can be
sub-divide into a variety of different divided into:
groups such as: Panthera leo (lion)
Carnivores Panthera tigris (tiger)
Primates

Scientific name
● The scientific name of an organism is made up of its genus and species.
● It is written in italics (Genus’s species) with the genus capitalized.
● Canis lupus is the scientific name for the wolf and Pinus taeda is the scientific
name for a loblolly pine.

Classification systems have continued to be developed by other scientists, such as

Carl Woese who developed the three-domain system. This is based on evidence
now available from chemical analysis.

The updated system divides organisms into:

• Archaea (primitive bacteria usually living in extreme environments)

• Bacteria (true bacteria)
• Eukaryota (including protists, fungi, plants and animals)
Cladistics (also called phylogenetics or phylogenetic systematics) looks to the
evolutionary history of organisms to form the underlying framework for their
classification. Cladistics, therefore, differs from phenetics in that it is based on
phylogeny (the evolutionary history of a group or lineage), not on the observation of
physical similarities.

Cladograms
When characterizing the evolutionary history of a group of organisms, scientists
develop tree-like diagrams called cladograms. These diagrams consist of a series of
branches and leaves that represent the evolution of groups of organisms through
time. When a group splits into two groups, the cladogram displays a node, after
which the branch then proceeds in different directions. Organisms are located as
leaves (at the ends of the branches).
In the example below, A represents the common ancestor of B, C and D. If you group
A, B, C and D together they form a monophyletic clade because the group contains
all descendants (B, C and D) of a common ancestor (A). B and C share more
synapomorphies than either species does with D, making them sister taxa (i.e. they
are more closely related to each other than anything else). In terms of descriptive
terminology for cladograms, the first line (connecting A to the main graph) is referred
to as the trunk (of the tree) and each point where the line splits in two is called a
node; the lines themselves are referred to as lineages.

Phylogenetic trees are branching diagrams, possibly a type of cladogram depending

who you ask, that represent possible evolutionary pathways. The trees have
branches, the length of which is proportional to the predicted (or hypothesised) time
between the divergence of the organisms, groups or gene sequences.
The example above shows a cladogram (left) and one of 12 possible phylogenetic
trees that can be generated based on it. The cladogram shows that the lizard and
salmon share more inherited traits (synapomorphies) than either does with the shark
or lamprey. In other words, as a group, the lizard and salmon have more in common
with the shark than they do with the lamprey. The tree suggests that a hypothetical
ancestor (Z) gave rise to the lamprey and to the shark; the scheme then goes on to
imply that a hypothetical descendent of the shark (X) gave rise to the salmon and the
lizard. The bar down the left-hand side of the tree signifies the time scale over which
this is hypothesised to have happened, and is usually based on molecular data.
The main differences between cladograms and phylogenetic trees are12345:
• Cladograms are based on characteristics, while phylogenetic trees are
based on genetics.
• Cladograms show hypothetical relationships, while phylogenetic trees are
backed by molecular evidence.
• Cladograms show the relationship between different organisms based on
their similarities, while phylogenetic trees show the phylogenetic history of
organisms with respect to the geological time scale.
 • Cladograms do not indicate time or the amount of difference between
groups, whereas phylogenetic trees often indicate time spans between
branching points.
• Cladograms have branches with equal distance, while the distance of each
branch in a phylogenetic tree is proportional to the amount of inferred
evolutionary change.

“Nature is messy; Science is tentative; as long as these truths remain

relevant to biological research, scientific names will continue to be revised.”