Binomial Nomenclature

Scientific NamingScientific Name Game

Ever hear of E. coli?

• It is the abbreviated form of the scientific name of Escherichia coli

T. rex.

• Tyrannosaurus rex

• Often lazy scientists just abbreviate the Genus with just a letter.

Binomial Nomenclaturetwo terms: the genus and the species

• Example:Common name = sugar pineScientific name = Pinus lambertiana

• ponderosa pine: Pinus ponderosalodgepole pine: Pinus contorta

Escherichia coli or Escherichia coli

• Genus is CAPITALIZED (written first)

• Species is lower case• Written in Latin• Italicized OR underlined

SCIENTIFIC NAME RULES

Carolus Linnaeus: devised the binomial nomenclature system

1707-1778

• Studied medicine• Disappointed

parents that he did not enter priesthood

• Studied plants to make medicines

Where do the names come from?

• Often they are Latin words, but they may also come from Ancient Greek:

• from a place• from a person (preferably a naturalist)• a name from a local language• including inside-jokes and puns• Play on words

Some Unusual Names

• Crichtonsaurus Dong - (named after Michael Crichton – author of Jurassic Park)

• Lalapa lusa (tiphiid wasp)• Abra cadabra (a clam)• Enema pan (rhinoceros beetle)• Orizabus botox (wrinkle free scarab beetle)• Cedecea- (bacterium named after CDC)

Biologists prefer to call organisms by

• Their scientific names rather than their common names

• No two species have the same scientific name although they may share a common genus. The genus name shows a very close relationship.

• Felis domestica .....house cat • Felis leo ............. lion • Felis onca ........... jaguar • Felis pardalis ....... ocelot • Felis concolor ...... mountain lion

TAXONS (units of taxonomy)

Domain

Kingdom

Phylum

Class

Order

Family

Genus

Species

How Can I Remember All Those Names?

• Kings Play Chess On Fine Glass Sand."

LINNAEAN CLASSIFICATION OF HUMANS

Domain: EukaryaKingdom: Animalia

Phylum: ChordataClass: Mammalia

Order: PrimatesFamily: Hominidae

Genus: HomoSpecies: sapiens

Bear Taxons

Dichotomous Key

• An identification key, also known as a dichotomous key, based on a series of two choices.

• Kinda like a scavenger hunt.

Making a Dichotomous Key

• "Dichotomous" means "divided into two parts".

• always give two choices in each step

Divide into YOUR LAB GROUPSYou will classify at least 15 LEAVES

Tape leaves at the end of the divisions

LEAF ACTIVITY EXAMPLE

See there is a leaf at each dead-end.

Good Place to Start

LEAF Tree ID Key (CLICK Here)

Tree Key

ALL LEAVES

broadleaf needles

How might you divide these?

Tips

• Use measurements rather than terms like "large" and "small“(larger than 6”, smaller than 6”)

• Make the first choice a positive one - something "is" instead of "is not".

• If possible, start both choices of a pair with the same word.

• 1. a. wings covered by an exoskeleton• b. wings not covered by an exoskeleton

A BRIEF KEY TO SELECTED TREES AND SHRUBS

• Tree key (Click Here) • Identify Tree by Name• Key To leaves of Virginia Trees

Common Leaf Descriptions

LAB VIDEOS (for Shell Classification Lab Fig. 3)

• http://www.oceanfootage.com/stockfootage/Barnacle (scroll down)

• Common lobster - Homarus gammarus - download video 06 – ARKive

• SERC - Education K12: Blue Crab Food Web• Shrimp• fiddler crab: Definition from Answers.com• (scroll down)• Hermit Crab also type in shrimp + Blue Crab