Taxonomy and Classification Treasure Hunt

Taxonomy title.jpg

An Internet-Based Treasure Hunt based on Taxonomy and Classification of Organisms

Click Here to print an answer sheet

INSTRUCTIONS:

Use the web links below to answer questions about how scientists classify living organisms.

QUESTIONS:

1. What is scientific classification?

2. Who created our current system of classification?

3. Which two categories are used for binomial nomenclature?

4. Which two categories of classification are the most specific?

5. What are the 7 categories for classifying living things? (King Philip Came Over For Good Spaghetti)?

6. What is the "scientific name" for the blue whale? (Be sure to capitalize only the Genus name and not the species name)

7. List the Kingdom, Phylum, Class, Order, Family, Genus, and Species names for the blue whale.

8. Why are the blue whales classified as mammals?

9. Why are blue whales placed in the Family Balaenidae?

10. List the Kingdom, Phylum, Class, Order, Family, Genus and Species names for human beings.

11. What is our scientific name? (Be sure to capitalize only the Genus name, and not the species name)

12. List the Kingdom, Phylum, Class, Order, Family, Genus and Species names for the lion.

13. What is the lion's species name?

14. List the classification categories that human beings and lions have in common. (Which ones are the same?)

15. Domesticated cats and lions are members of the same____________________________?

16. How many kingdoms are there?

17. List them along with their characteristics.

18. Give an example of an organism in each kingdom.

19. What does sessile mean?

20. What does motile mean?

21. What is an autotroph?

22. What is a dichotomous key used for?

23. In a dichotomous key, how many parts are there to each question?

INTERNET RESOURCES:

General Taxonomy

C arl Linnaeaus

Green Kingdom

What is scientific classification

Kingdoms and characteristics

Classification of Human Beings

THE BIG QUESTION:

Click Here to go to the dichotomous key activity web site

Once you've gotten to the web site, click on the words printable version to print out the dichotomous key with directions. Name all of the "Wacky People" with their scientific names. Finish for homework.

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