Chapter 1 - Characteristics & classification of living organisms
Aug 21, 2025
1.1 Characteristics of organisms
The seven characteristics of all living organisms:
* Movement - an action by an organism or part of an organism causing a change in
position or place
* Respiration - the chemical reactions in cells that break down nutrient molecules
and release energy for metabolism
* Sensitivity - the ability to detect and respond to changes in the internal or
external environment
* Growth - a permanent increase in size or growth by producing new cells
* Reproduction - the processes that make more of the same kind of organism
* Excretion - the removal of waste products of metabolism and substances in excess
of requirements
* Nutrition - taking in materials for energy growth and development
1.2 The biological classification system
Classification means putting things into groups. They are classified
according to how closely related they are.
Common ancestor - a species that lived in the past and is thought to have given
rise to several different species today.
Species - a group of organisms that can reproduce to produce fertile offspring. It
is the smallest group into which organisms are classified.
Fertile - able to reproduce
Binomial system - a system of naming species that is internationally agreed in
which the scientific name is made of two parts showing the genus and the species
Always in italics and first the genus name with a capital letter then the species
name in lowercase
1.3 Keys
A way to identify an organism whose name you do not know, using only a
picture is by using a dichotomous key. It leads you to the name of an organism by
giving you two descriptions to choose from at a time. The statements are opposites
to one another.
Dichotomous key - a way of identifying an organism by working through pairs of
statements or questions that lead you to its name.
Comparative or subjective descriptions (eg. large, taller) are not suitable.
1.4 Kingdoms
Kingdoms - one of the major groups into which all organisms are classified
The characteristics of the 5 kingdoms:
* The animal kingdom -
* Cells
* Have a nucleus
* Have no cell wall
* Have no chloroplasts
* They feed on organic substances made by other living organisms
* The plant kingdom -
* Cells
* Have a nucleus
* Have cell walls made of cellulose
* Usually contain chloroplasts
* They feed by photosynthesis
* They may have roots, stems and leaves
* The fungus kingdom -
* They are usually multicellular but some are unicellular
* Cells
* Have a nucleus
* Have a cell walls made without cellulose
* Have no chloroplasts
* They feed by digesting wast organic material and absorbing it into their cells
* The protocist kingdom -
* They are usually unicellular but some are multicellular
* Cells
* Have a nucleus
* May or may not have a cell wall
* May or may not have chloroplasts
* Some feed by photosynthesis while other feed on organic substances
* The prokaryote kingdom -
* Cells
* have no nucleus
* Have cell walls without cellulose
* Have no chloroplasts
* Have no mitochondria
* They have a circular loop of DNA free in the cytoplasm
* Usually have plasmids
1.5 Groups within the animal and plant kingdoms
Within each kingdom, organisms are classified into even smaller groups.
Animal kingdom:
* Vertebrates - animals that have backbones
* Fish -
* Scaly skin
* Gills throughout their life
* Fins
* Eggs are laid in water and have no shell
* Amphibians -
* Skin with no scales
* Tadpoles have gills but adults have lungs
* Tadpoles live in water but adults usually live on land
* Eggs are laid in water and have no shell
* Reptiles -
* Scaly skin
* Eggs have a soft shell to prevent drying
* Birds -
* Skin with feathers and sometimes few scales
* Have a beak
* Front two limbs are wings though not all can fly
* Eggs have a hard shell
* Mammals -
* Skin with hair
* Have a pinna (ear flap)
* Have sweat glands
* Develop young in a uterus attached to the mother by a placenta
* Females have mammary glands to produce milk to feed the young
* Have a diaphragm
* Have different types of teeth
* Arthropods - animals that have an exoskeleton with several pairs of jointed legs
but no backbone
* Insects -
* Three pairs of jointed limbs
* Two pairs of wings
* Breathe through tubes called trachea
* Body divided into head, thorax and antennae
* Crustaceans -
* More than four pairs of jointed legs
* Two pairs of antennae
* Arachnids -
* Four pairs of jointed limbs
* No antennae
* Body divided into cephalothorax and abdomen
* Myriapods -
* Many similar segments
* Each segment has jointed legs
* One pair of antennae
Plant kingdom:
* Ferns -
* Plants with roots, stems and fronds (leaves)
* Do not produce flowers
* Reproduce by spores produced under the leaves
* Flowering plants -
* Plants with roots, stems, and leaves
* Reproduce using flowers and seeds
* The seeds are produced inside an ovary
* Dicotyledons -
* Seeds with two cotyledons
* Usually have a main root with side roots coming out of it
* Leaves have a network of veins
* Flower parts (petals) in multiples of four or five
* Vascular bundles arranged in a ring
* Monocotyledons -
* Seeds with two cotyledons
* Roots grow directly from the stem
* Leaves have parallel veins
* Flower parts (petals) in multiples of three
* Vascular bundles arranged randomly
1.6 Viruses
Viruses cause common diseases such as colds and influenza and also mor serious ones
such as AIDS. They are not normally considered to be living organisms because they
cannot do anything until they get inside a living cell. They then take over the
cell to make multiple copies which burst out of the cell to invade others.
They are not made of cell, but consist of genetic material surrounded by a protein
coat.
Put sample exam questions in these boxes (or whatever you wish!)
