Taxonomic Classification

How are organisms classified to the species level?

A hierarchical system is used for classifying organisms to the species level. This system is called
taxonomic classification. The broadest classifications are by domain and kingdom; the most specific
classification is by genus and species. The hierarchical groupings in between include phylum, class,
family, and order.
What is a species?
Species are the basic unit of classification. While there are different views on what defines a
species, in sexually reproducing organisms, a species has traditionally been defined by the ability of
its members to reproduce together to form fertile offspring. This definition is trickier in asexually
reproducing organisms like bacteria, archaea, and protists, where scientists look at the similarity in
DNA among individuals to tell whether they are in the same species.
When identifying an organism, familiar names like human, fruit fly, or maple tree are most likely
the names you use. However, each type of organism has a scientific name humans are
called Homo sapiens, for example. Scientific names are derived from the genus and species names
in a system known as binomial nomenclature (bi = two; nom = name). When species names
appear in print, the genus is always capitalized and the species name is not, and both names appear
in italics (or underlined).
This system allows for a common language with which biologists can both classify and compare
organisms. It also provides a basis for biologists to communicate their findings with other scientists.
A key aspect of taxonomy is the ability to characterize each level of description with unifying
features, thus relaying information about the organism(s).
For example, for Homo sapiens, the classification would break down as follows:
Classification level Name Characterized by:
Domain Eukarya Nucleus, organelles
Kingdom Animalia Ingests food, multicellular, no
cell wall
Phylum Chordata Spinal cord
Subphylum Vertebrata Segmented backbone
Superclass Tetrapoda Four limbs
Class Mammalia Nurse offspring
Subclass Theria Live birth
Order Primates High level of intelligence
Family Hominidae Walk upright
Genus Homo Human
Species H. sapiens Modern human
Below is an additional example of the classification of an animal. This is for an invertebrate, the fruit
fly, which is used by many biologists to study genes and heredity.
Classification level Name Characterized by:
Domain Eukarya Nucleus, organelles
Kingdom Animalia
Ingests food, multicellular, no
cell wall
Phylum Arthropoda
Hard exoskeleton, paired
legs, segmented body
Class Insecta Terrestrial, six legs, antennae
Order Diptera Two-winged
Family Drosophilidae
Genus Drosophila
Species D. melanogaster Common fruit fly
Furthermore, similar schemes are used for plants. Below is the description used to characterize a
tree, the red maple.
Classification level Name Characterized by:
Domain Eukarya Nucleus, organelles
Kingdom Plantae
Makes own food, multicellular,
cell wall
Phylum Tracheophyta Tissue-level organization
Class Angiospermae Flowering
Order Sapindales Produces sap
Family Aceraceae
Genus Acer
Species A. rubrum Red maple
As additional organisms are described and additional features are found which differentiate these
groups, biologists have added taxonomic levels to distinguish groups from one another. As seen in
the Homo sapienstable, there are sub and super groupings which come before or after the
traditional taxonomic level. This further level of detail gives scientists more power to describe
organisms.
Not surprisingly, there are levels below species. Particularly common in bacteria and plants,
subspecies are described which can produce viable offspring but possess one or more features
which distinguish them from other members of that species. In plants, these sub groups are referred
to as different varieties or subspecies, while in single-celled organisms, they are referred to as
strains. Within the animal kingdom, subspecies may be termed races or breeds. For example,
all domesticated dogs are grouped in the same species, Canis familiaris, though we all know there is
a huge diversity of subspecies, or breeds.
Ideally, the taxonomic classification reflects evolutionary relationships among organisms. For
example, it is accepted that all organisms included in the phylum Chordata descend from a common
ancestor. Currently, many biologists are using DNA sequence data to verify taxonomic descriptions
of organisms and determine the patterns of evolution within and between different groups.