All living things on Earth can be classified into six major groups, or Kingdoms.
The Six Kingdoms
Archae Bacteria
Protists Fungi
Plants Animals
i.e. cholera, E. Coli
• Further classified by their external shape: rods, spirals & spheres
• Very small: 1/20th the size of a normal cell
• Made of a single cell without a nucleus
• The simplest form of life
Bacteria
i.e. thermophiles
• Can survive in a huge range of environments
• Also single-celled, small
Archae
• Do not have a nucleus
• Like bacteria, but share characteristics with complex organisms, like plants and animals
i.e. algae, seaweed
• The most diverse Kingdom – holds the “leftover” organisms
• Live in water
• Have nuclei, but are not plants or animals
• The most complex single-celled organisms
Protists
i.e. molds, mushrooms
• Decomposers: get their energy by breaking down dead organisms
• Can be helpful (yeast) or harmful (Dutch elm)
• Fungi cells have a nucleus & a cell wall
• Multicellular organisms
Fungi
• Producers: they make their own food using energy from the Sun
• Very diverse Kingdom
• Multicellular
Plants
• All plant cells contain a nucleus, cell wall and chloroplasts
i.e. moss, trees, grasses
• Consumers: get their energy from feeding on other organisms
• Very diverse Kingdom
• Multicellular
Animals
• Split into two more groups: vertebrates and invertebrates
i.e. worms, insects, you!
Animals
Birds
Reptiles
Amphibians
Fish
Vertebrates Invertebrates
Arthropods
Echinoderms
Molluscs
Worms
Cnidarians
Sponges
Animals
Filter feed in water
Sponges
Cannot move (sessile)
A collection of cells
The simplest animals
Characteristics
Anemones Hydras
Cnidarians
Jellyfish Corals
Body symmetry (2,5,6)
Stinging tentacles
Simple body plans
Characteristics
Roundworms
Worms
Annelids
Flatworms
Some are parasites
Live in moist environments
Complex bodies
Characteristics
Gastropods
Molluscs
Bivalves Clams, oysters
Have a muscular “foot”
Most have a hard shell
Soft bodied animals
Characteristics
Cephalopods
Snails, slugs
Squid, octopi
Sand dollars
Echinoderms
Sea stars
Sea urchins
Radial symmetry
Feed on the ocean floor
Spines or skeletons
Characteristics
Crustaceans Milli/Centipedes
Arthropods
Insects Arthropods
Split into 4 groups:
Armour-like exoskeleton
Segmented bodies
Characteristics
Fish
Bony Fish
Jawless fish Cartilaginous
Split into 3 groups:
Breathe through gills
Adapted for aquatic life
Most vertebrates are fish
Characteristics
Amphibians
Newts Toads
Salamanders Frogs
Can breathe through skin
Lay eggs in water
Live in moist environments
Characteristics
Reptiles
Turtles Crocodilians
Lizards Snakes
Ectotherms – cold blooded
Lay shelled eggs on land
Tough, scaly skin
Characteristics
Birds
Endotherms: warm-blooded
Most are adapted to fly
Wings and scaly legs
Feathers and a beak
Characteristics
Mammals
Endotherms: warm-blooded
Produce milk for young
Specialized teeth
Have hair at some point
Characteristics