Category Animal World

              What, do you think, would happen if we had no backbone? Our backbone not only supports our body, but also enables us to walk erectly. Without a backbone, vertebrates in general would not be able to survive in nature.

              However, as we have already seen, not all animals have backbones. Then, how do they survive? Internal and external skeletons help an animal to survive without a backbone. Some invertebrates have internal skeletons that support and protect their internal tissues. These skeletons are made up of different materials. Sponges have a framework of silica or other substances that stiffen their bodies. Others have external skeletons in the form of shells. Invertebrates belonging to the molluscs group have shells made of calcium carbonate, while those that are anthropods have external skeletons made up of a substance called chitin.

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              Have you seen the picture of the skeleton of a man? A strong backbone system supports our body. Man is able to stand erect or walk because of his backbone. Invertebrates are animals without a backbone. Of the millions of species of animals on the planet, 97 per cent are invertebrates. Common examples of invertebrates include snails, clams, insects, spiders, worms and molluscs.

              Do you think that all animals on Earth have the same body structure? Do insects such as caterpillars and bees have backbones like mammals such as bears and sloths? Even though they are all animals, insects and mammals have very different body structures! Caterpillars and bees are invertebrates.

              In the animal kingdom, invertebrates are actually the largest group. They make up 97 per cent of all animals on the planet. The total number of invertebrate species could be over 30 million. This number is much higher than that of the vertebrates, which is about 60,000. Invertebrates are also very diverse. They include animals living on the land and those living in the sea. Some examples are earthworms, centipedes, flies, sea stars, jellyfish and crawfish!

             Invertebrates have a long history of existence on Earth. Fossil records show that invertebrates even existed 600 million years ago. Invertebrates also have a big impact on other animals’ lives. They are a major food source for other animal species such as birds and fish. In agricultural production, some of them act as pests and parasites. This includes bugs like grasshoppers and ladybugs.

Picture credit: google

              Classifying animals into groups was based entirely on observation initially. Our observation has a limited scope because we rely exclusively on our senses, which can sometimes deceive us. However, today, with modern equipment with more precision and accuracy, Man is able to do this job better.

              Animal classification now uses sophisticated scientific methods to identify relationships among species. Since the methods used to classify animals are continuously changing, there is the probability that the groups in which species are placed may change too. Occasionally, new species are identified!

               For example, until recently, elephants were classified into two species: African and Asian elephants. But DNA studies conducted in 2010 revealed that African elephants actually are of two distinct species- African bush elephants and African forest elephants. This, there are three species of elephants in the world now!

                                                                                                               

              Do you know that all the animals that we know have separate scientific names? Sometimes, it is very difficult to recall these names too. However knowledge of their scientific names would help us categorize animals according to their similarities and differences.

              The system of naming that we follow today is called the binomial system. It is the formal method of naming different species. Under the binomial system, each species is given a scientific name that is formed by the combination of two terms: the genus name and the specific descriptor.

              The genus is the major subdivision into which organisms are classified. The descriptor is the category into which the organism falls. For example, the scientific name for man is ‘Homo Sapiens’. ‘Homo’ is the genus name for animals that have large brains and use tools. ‘Sapiens’ is the category that pertains to modern humans.

              Here is a list of the binomial name of some common animals: Dog – Canis lupus, Cat – Felis catus, Horse – Equus caballus, Goat – Capra aegagrus hircus, Donkey – Equus asinus, Cow- Bos Taurus, Tiger-Panthera Tigris, Lion – Felis Leo, Indian Elephant- Elephas maximus indicus.

 

 

                 From the time language originated, Man starter naming animals. His scientific temper prompted him to order and categorize all living and non-living things for easier understanding. Man observed, named and compared animals and plants.

                 Aristotle, an ancient Greek philosopher, was the first known man to introduce the classification of animals. He classified species according to various characteristics, including whether they gave birth or laid eggs, or whether they were warm or cold-blooded.

                 The Roman naturalist Pliny the Elder wrote Naturalis Historia, a large work in which many plants were described. Naturalis Historia is also considered the first encyclopedia.

 

                 Over the years, animal classification became more scientific. The 16th century Italian philosopher Andrea Cesalpino classified plants according to their fruits and seeds.

                 The English naturalist John Ray published works on botany and zoology in the 17th century. He classified species according to the similarities that he observed, and was the first person to offer a scientific definition of the word species.

                 The Swedish botanist Carl Linnaeus of 18th century is known as the father of modern taxonomy. He popularized the binomial naming system, and introduced the use of kingdoms, classes, orders, genera and species. The Linnaean system is still in use today.

            When you are going to appear for an important examination, how would you prepare? If you try to read everything that comes your way, you would not be able to secure the best results. Studying something in a structured and orderly fashion makes it easier for comprehension. Ordering and classifying animals makes it easier to study them. Animal classification is the process of identifying, naming and organizing animal species into groups. The branch of science that deals with animal classification is known as taxonomy.

            Animals can be classified into two main groups: vertebrates and invertebrates. Vertebrates have backbones, while invertebrates do not. In all, there are more than 8 million animal species in the Kingdom Animalia and most of them are invertebrates.

            Each living organism is classified into Kingdom, Phylum, Class, Order, Family, Genus, and Species. There are five kingdoms. The two main kingdoms are animals and plants. Animalia includes animals and plantae, plants. The other kingdoms are Protista that includes single-celled organisms, Fungi that includes yeast, moulds, mushrooms etc., and Monera that include Bacteria.

            Some scientists say that there are five kingdoms, while for some others there are six. Other than Animalia, Plantae, Fungi, and Protista, they consider Archaea and Bacteria as other different kingdoms. For some other scientists, Monera is the fifth one, which includes Archaea and Bacteria.