 | Term | Definition |
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taxonomy |
practice of classifying plants and animals according to their presumed natural relationships |
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species |
A classificatory group of animals or plants subordinate to a genus. |
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genus |
(biology) taxonomic group containing one or more species |
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genera |
(biology) taxonomic group containing one or more species |
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family |
(biology) a taxonomic group containing one or more genera |
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order |
(biology) taxonomic group containing one or more families |
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class |
(biology) a taxonomic group containing one or more orders |
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phylum |
(biology) the major taxonomic group of animals and plants |
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division |
(biology) a group of organisms forming a subdivision of a larger category |
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kingdom |
one of seven biological categories: Monera or Protoctista or Plantae or Fungi or Animalia |
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phylogeny |
(biology) the sequence of events involved in the evolutionary development of a species or taxonomic group of organisms |
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systematics |
Field of biology that deals with the diversity of life. Is usually divided into the two areas of Phylogenetics and Taxonomy. |
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kingdom monera |
prokaryotic bacteria and blue-green algae and various primitive pathogens |
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plasmid |
a small cellular inclusion consisting of a ring of DNA that is not in a chromosome but is capable of autonomous replication |
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obligate aerobe |
An organism that requires oxygen to survive (aerobic metabolism only). |
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facultative anaerobe |
An organism that will use oxygen (aerobic metabolism) if it is available, and that can ferment (anaerobic metabolism) if it is not. |
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obligate anaerobe |
An organism that can only survive in the absence of oxygen (anaerobic metabolism); oxygen is toxic to obligate anaerobes. |
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eubacteria |
known as "true bacteria", largest of the two bacterial kingdoms |
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archaebacteria |
bacteria that live under extreme conditions such as: high temperature, high salt content, and low oxygen |
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methanogens |
archaebacteria; produces methane and lives in swamps |
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extreme halophiles |
An organism whose growth is dependent on large amounts (generally more than 10% in solution) of salt (sodium chloride, NaCl). |
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thermoacidopiles |
archaebacteria; lives in hot geysers and needs heat and acid |
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endospores |
highly heat resistant bacterial structures that are not killed by boiling. the cause of many previously failed attempts at disproving spontaneous generation of microbes. Plant broths usually carry bacterial endospores....but meat broths rarely do. |
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cocci |
any spherical or nearly spherical bacteria |
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bacilli |
aerobic rod-shaped spore-producing bacterium |
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spirilla |
any flagellated aerobic bacteria having a spirally twisted rodlike form |
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gram stain technique |
most important and universally used staining technique in the bacteriology laboratory. It is used to distinguish between gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria, which have distinct and consistent differences in their cell walls. Gram-positive cells may become gram negative through mechanical damage, conversion to protoplasts, or aging, in which autolytic enzymes attack the walls. |
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cyanobacteria |
bacteria from kingdom Eubacteria, which produces its own food and is responsible for the color of the oceans |
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chemosynthetic bacteria |
Discovered during a dive to Hydrothermal Vents in 1977, Chemosynthetic Bacteria is a very unique organism. These bacteria are the food source for many deep water organisms. Vent communities are completely isolated from other organisms from the marine world.The discovery of chemosynthetic bacteria and the vent communities was as remarkable as finding life on another planet. |
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nitrogen-fixing bacteria |
they are free-living soil organisms, but some plants have developed an association with bacteria which infect their roots and , in return for sugars from the plant, fix nitrogen which can be used by the plant for growth. The most important belong to the genus Rhizobium, which infects the roots of both trees and herbaceous plants in the bean family (Fabaceae or Leguminosae). |
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spirochetes |
eubacteria; long, swiggly; long flagellas and some can cause syphilis and lyme disease |
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kingdom protista |
Eukaryotic; one celled and many celled; some move; some make own food others obtain it from other organisms |
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convergent evolution |
where unclosely related organisms evolve similar traits as a result of having to adapt to similar environments |
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euglenophyta |
[plant-like] Unicellular; photosynthetic: chlorophyll a & b. Have flagella and eyespots (to respond to light—phototaxis) |
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dinoflagellata |
[plant-like] Unicellular; marine & freshwater. Photosynthetic. 2 flagella. Cell walls w/cellulose. |
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chrysophyta |
[plant-like] Golden algae; most unicellular, some multicellular. Photosynthetic. Golden colored. Covered with tiny scales of silica or calcium carbonate. |
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phaeophyta |
Division of algae, generally brown in colour, with multicellular, branched thalluses. Includes large seaweeds such as Laminaria and Fucus. The brown colour is due to the xanthophylls, fucoxanthin and lutein. Many have laminarin as a food reserve and alginic acid as a wall component. |
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rhodophyta |
Red algae. [phycoerythrin (accessory pigment which masks gree n of chlorophyll and absorb blue & green); no flagellated stages]. Darkness depends on depth in water. Bonnemasnia, eleseria, Plmaria, seaweed. |
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rhizopoda |
An extensive class of Protozoa, including those which have pseudopodia, by means of which they move about and take their food. The principal groups are Lobosa (or Amoebea), Helizoa, Radiolaria, and Foraminifera (or Reticularia) |
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foraminifera |
[animal-like] Unicellular. Produce calcareous tests (shells) with pores through which cytoplasmic projections extend. |
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zoomastigophora |
A class of protozoa consisting of animal-like flagellates. Its organisms are heterotrophic and have one-to-many flagella. This class includes one superorder, parabasalidea, and six orders: choanoflagellida, kinetoplastida, proteromonadida, retortamonadida, diplomonadida, and oxymonadida. |
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ciliophora |
class of protozoa having cilia or hairlike appendages on part or all of the surface during some part of the life cycle |
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acrasiomycota (cellular slime molds) |
cells remain seperated during every phase of the mold's life cycle |
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myxomycota |
[fungus-like] Slime molds produce large multinucleated masses (plasmodium). Sometimes slime molds have stalks, which grow upwards and spores form (fruiting bodies). Other times they produce gametes, which fuse and produce a diploid zygote to form a multinucleated mass. They are found in moist soil, decaying leaves, or logs in damp forests. |
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oomycota |
group of filamentous, unicellular protists, physically resembling fungi. They are microscopic, absorptive organisms that reproduce both sexually and asexually and are composed of mycelia, or a tube-like vegetative body (all of an organism's mycelia are called its thallus). |
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kingdom fungi |
Contains over 100 000 species and has four main groups: molds (zygomycota), sac fungi (ascomycota), club fungi (basidiomycota), and imperfect fungi (deuteromycota) |
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hypha |
any of the threadlike filaments forming the mycelium of a fungus |
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mycelium |
the vegetative part of a fungus consisting of a mass of branching threadlike hyphae |
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coenocytic |
no cell partitions, "super cell". |
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chitin |
Complex carbohydrate that is main component of fungi cell walls. |
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haustoria |
specialized absorbing structure of a parasitic plant, such as the rootlike outgrowth of the dodder, that obtains food from a host plant |
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plasmogamy |
Fusion of two or more cells or protoplasts without fusion of the nuclei, as occurs in higher terrestrial fungi |
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karyogamy |
The coming together and fusing of cell nuclei, as in fertilization. |
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meiosis |
(genetics) cell division that produces reproductive cells in sexually reproducing organisms |
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asexual reproduction |
reproduction that does not involve the union of gametes and in which a single parent produces offspring that are genetically identical to the parent |
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fragmentation |
a kind of reproduction that occurs when an individual breaks up into pieces, each of which grows into a new individual |
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budding |
reproduction of some unicellular organisms (such as yeasts) by growth and specialization followed by the separation by constriction of a part of the parent |
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asexual spores |
another asexual form of reproduction by fungus. these specialized cells do not require the fusion of gametes. these are adapted for dispersal, they travel to a favorable environment and germinate there to produce new thalli. |
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sporangiospores |
spore produced by fungi: a spore produced by a hollow single- or multicelled organ sporangium in fungi, ferns, and some other plants |
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conidia |
Spores for asexual reproduction in sac fungi |
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zygomycota |
division of fungi having sexually produced zygospores, division of fungi having sexually produced zygospores; a division of the soil fungi consisting of soil saprobes and invertebrate parasites. Organisms may cause human or animal infection in debilitated or highly stressed individuals. In some systems of classification, the Zygomycota are treated as a subdivision, Zygomycotina, which is classified under the division Eumycota. |
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ascomycota |
a phylum of the fungi kingdom characterized by septate hyphae, asexual reproduction by conidia and sexual reproduction in an ascus containing eight ascospores. Genera of veterinary importance in the phylum are Aspergillus, Penicillium, Sporothrix, Microsporum and Trichophyton. |
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basidiomycota |
comprises fungi bearing the spores on a basidium |
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deuteromycota |
Extremely varied phylum, composed of fungi that are unable to be classified into another phylum |
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lichens |
Symbiotic organism between a fungus and a photosynthetic organism, symbiotic associations of fungi and algae |
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mycorrhizal |
association between a fungus and the roots of a plant.[1] In a mycorrhizal association the fungus may colonize the roots of a host plant either intracellularly or extracellularly. |
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kingdom plantae |
Multicellular, sessile, cell wall made of cellulose, autotrophic by photosynthesis, aerobic in mitochondria |
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xylem |
Vascular plant tissue consisting mainly of tubular dead cells that conduct most of the water and minerals upward from roots to the rest of the plant. |
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phloem |
Vascular plant tissue consisting of living cells arranged into elongated tubes that transport sugar and other organic nutrients throughout the plant |
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deciduous |
(of plants and shrubs) shedding foliage at the end of the growing season |
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bryophyta |
a division of nonflowering plants characterized by rhizoids rather than true roots and having little or no organized vascular tissue and showing alternation of generations between gamete-bearing forms and spore-bearing forms |
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gametangia |
Gamete producing structure in fungi |
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antheridium |
Male reproductive structure in some algae and plants |
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archegonium |
a female sex organ occurring in mosses, ferns, and most gymnosperms |
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tracheophytes |
has vascular tissue, and has specialized organs |
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sphenophyta |
division of primitive spore-bearing vascular plants. |
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pterophyta |
Ferns. “Seedless plants”. Among earliest vascular plants to colonize land. Life cycle involves alternation of generation (dominant stage is the sporophyte generation). |
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microsporangia |
sporangium that produces spores that give rise to male gametophytes. Microsporangia are notable in spikemosses, and a minority of ferns. In Gymnosperms and Flowering plants, the microsporangium is contained within a pollen grain |
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macrosporangia |
A structure that produces one or more megaspores |
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nucellus |
central part of a plant ovule |
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mother cells |
A cell that divides to produce two or more daughter cells. |
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micropyle |
the opening in the seed coat where the tube grows in order for the 2 sperm nuclei to fertilize the egg |
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pollen tube |
slender tubular outgrown from a pollen grain that penetrates the ovule and releases male gametes |
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coniferophyta |
Woody plants that bear seeds in cones (the seeds are not enclosed). They have tracheids and well-developed phloem. Both the roots and stems are capable of secondary growth. Fertilization does not require a water source. |
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carpel, pistil |
The ovule-producing reproductive organ of a flower, consisting of the stigma, style, and ovary. |
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ovary |
in the female reproductive system of animals, an organ that produces eggs. |
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style |
(botany) the narrow elongated part of the pistil between the ovary and the stigma |
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stigma |
sticky part of the pistil that captures pollen grains |
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stamen |
The pollen producing reproductive organ of a flower consisting of an anther and filament. |
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anther |
In an angiosperm the terminal pollen sac of a stamen where pollen grains with male gametes form |
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filament |
the stalk of a stamen |
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petals |
modified leaves which are usually bright in color to attract pollinators. |
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sepals |
the first set of floral organs, often green (a ring pf sepals is called a calyx |
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pollinators |
an animal which spreads pollen <<helps reproduce new plants>>k |
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fruit |
the ripened reproductive body of a seed plant |
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embryo sac |
Female gametophyte of angiosperms, contains egg cell. |
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synergids |
One of two small cells lying near the egg in the mature embryo sac of a flowering plant. |
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antipodal cells |
Three cells of the embryo sac in angiosperms, found at the end of the embryo away from the point of entry of the pollen tube |
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polar nuclei |
Two nuclei, contained within the same cell, that are created from the mitotic division of the megaspore during angiosperm reproduction; unite in the ovule to form a fusion nucleus, which gives rise to endosperm when fertilized |
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endosperm |
nutritive tissue surrounding the embryo within seeds of flowering plants |
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double fertilization |
unique to angiosperms, term used to describe one sperm fusing with the egg, while the other fuses with two nuclei in the large central cell of the famale gametophyte. |
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kingdom animalia |
Aerobic, multicellular, heterotrophic by ingestion, no cell walls, motile through cytoskeletal motors, taxonomic kingdom comprising all living or extinct animals |
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cephalization |
concentration of feeding organs, sensors, and neural structures at the anterior end, the part of the body most likely to make first contact with food or threatening stimuli. |
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gastrovascular cavity |
Guts: place where food is digested; Digestive tract |
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coelom |
a cavity in the mesoderm of an embryo that gives rise in humans to the pleural cavity and pericardial cavity and peritoneal cavity |
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segmentation |
(embryology) the repeated division of a fertilised ovum |
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protostomes |
Undergoes spiral cleavage, and the mouth forms before the anus. |
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deuterostomes |
Undergoes radial cleavage and the anus forms before the mouth. |
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cleavages |
The series of mitotic cell divisions that produces a blastula from a fertilized ovum. It is the basis of the multicellularity of complex organisms. Also called segmentation. |
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porifera |
Sponges; sessile; diploblastic; pores; radial symmetry |
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choanocytes |
cells that live in sponges and have flagella that circulate water |
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osculum |
A large opening on a sponge through which filtered water is expelled |
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amoebocytes |
the "do-all" cells of sponges, moving by means of pseudopodia, they digest and distribute food, transport oxygen, and disposes of waste. they manufacture the fibers that make up a sponges skeleton |
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medusa |
one of two forms that coelenterates take: is the free-swimming sexual stage in the life cycle of a coelenterate and has a gelatinous umbrella-shaped body and tentacles |
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polyp |
the cnidarian body plan characterized by a vaselike shape and which is usually adapted for life attached to an underwater surface. |
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platyhelminthes |
flatworms (tapeworms, planarians, flukes); bilateral symmetry; central nervous system |
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flatworms |
A group of often parasitical worms that have bilateral symmetry, a one opening digestive system, and the beginnings of a brain; tapeworm |
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flukes |
trematoda, a group of flatworms that have flattened bodies but are not segmented. they are small but deadly. they have life cycles that pass through larval and adult forms. humans usually harbor the adults in specific tissue (like the lung), and aquatic plants and animals often serve as intermediate hosts and harbor the lavae. all flukes require at least one intermediate host, some require a second. |
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tapeworms |
Cestodes, a group of flatworms that live in the intestines of animals including humans. their flat segmented bodies consist of 3 parts: the scolex with hooks to attach to the intestinal lining, a neckline germinal center where new segments are formed, and proglottids. hermaphroditic. ex. beef tapeworm |
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proglottids |
One of the segments of a tapeworm, containing both male and female reproductive organs |
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nematoda |
Roundworms. Soil dwellers with pseudocoeloms. Complete digestive tract that extends from mouth → anus. Some are parasites. |
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rotifera |
a phylum with specialised organ systems (alimentary cannal [digestive tract]) |
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mollusca |
(snails, clams, squids, octopuses) have a soft body that in many species is protected by a hard shell |
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annelida |
Segmented worms, earthworms; anus and mouth; closed circulatory system; nervous system; setae-bristle appendages |
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arthropoda |
Insects, arachnids, crustaceans; segmented bodies; paired, jointed legs; chitinous exoskeleton; open circulatory system; dorsal heart |
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pupa |
an insect in the inactive stage of development (when it is not feeding) intermediate between larva and adult |
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metamorphosis |
the marked and rapid transformation of a larva into an adult that occurs in some animals |
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echinodermata chordata |
are a phylum of marine animals found at all ocean depths. Aside from the problematic Arkarua , the first definitive members of the phylum appeared near the start of the Cambrian period, and contains about 7,000 living species, making it the second largest grouping of deuterostomes, after the chordates; they are the largest phylum without freshwater or terrestrial representatives. |
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notochord |
a flexible rodlike structure that forms the supporting axis of the body in the lowest chordates and lowest vertebrates and in embryos of higher vertebrates |
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dorsal hollow nerve cord |
a tubular bundle of nerves that lies above the notochord |
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pharyngeal gill slits |
characteristic of both hemichordata and chordata, are used by organisms in feeding. The wall of the pharynx is perforated by up to 200 vertical slits, which are separated by stiffening rods |
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muscular tail |
In Chordates, the tail extends beyond the digestive tract |
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vertebrate chordates |
includes the well-known vertebrates (fishes, amphibians, reptiles, birds, mammals). The vertebrates and hagfishes together comprise the taxon Craniata. The remaining chordates are the tunicates (Urochordata), lancelets (Cephalochordata), and, possibly, some odd extinct groups. With few exceptions, chordates are active animals with bilaterally symmetric bodies that are longitudinally differentiated into head, trunk and tail. The most distinctive morphological features of chordates are the notochord, nerve cord, and visceral clefts and arches. |
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vertebrae |
backbones that are joined by flexible cartilage and protects a vertebrates spinal cord. |
