Taxonomy Study Guide

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Taxonomy Quiz

 

 

Modified True/False
Indicate whether the statement is true or false.  If false, change the identified word or phrase to make the statement true.
 1.
Scientists use taxonomy to determine the evolutionary history of organisms. _________________________
 2.
Taxonomy provides consistent ways to name organisms. _________________________
 3.
Scientific names of organisms consist of two English terms. _________________________
 4.
Two different organisms cannot have the same scientific name. _________________________
 5.
Genus is the basic biological unit in the Linnaean system of classification. _________________________
 6.
A genus is a taxonomic category that contains several families. _________________________
 7.
Under the Linnaean system of classification, organisms are grouped on the basis of similarities in structure. _________________________
 8.
Linnaeus devised eight levels of classification categories for living things. _________________________
 9.
The least inclusive group to which an organism can be assigned is its kingdom. _________________________
 10.
Kingdoms are subgroups of phyla. _________________________
 11.
A species is a larger taxonomic group than a genus. _________________________
 12.
Bird wings and insect wings are examples of analogous structures. _________________________
 13.
Organisms that have similar traits but evolved independently are the result of convergent evolution. _________________________
 14.
Cladistics is used to determine the sequence in which different groups of organisms evolved. _________________________
 15.
In modern systematics, studies of the changes in the skeletons of vertebrates have helped researchers to estimate the time at which each species began to evolve. _________________________
 16.
Comparing the sequence of DNA bases in the genes of several organisms is used to determine the order in which the organisms evolved. _________________________
 17.
All organisms in the kingdom Animalia are multicellular heterotrophs whose cells lack cell walls. _________________________
 18.
Archaea are eukaryotes that are characterized by several unique biochemical characteristics. _________________________
 19.
Traditionally, bacteria have been classified on the basis of their shape, cell wall composition, and metabolism. _________________________
 20.
Most organisms in the kingdoms Plantae and Animalia are multicellular. _________________________
 

Multiple Choice
Identify the choice that best completes the statement or answers the question.
 21.
Taxonomy is
a.
 the study of life.
b.
 the science of naming and classifying organisms.
c.
 the evolutionary history of a species.
d.
 the sequence in which different groups evolved.
 22.
An advantage of our scientific naming system is that
a.
 common names mean the same in all countries.
b.
 Latin names are easy to pronounce.
c.
 biologists can communicate regardless of their native languages.
d.
 organisms all have the same scientific name.
 23.
All scientific names of organisms must be
a.
 unique and have two Latin words.
b.
 general and use the species name.
c.
 different and repeat the phylum name.
d.
 similar and include the common name.
 24.
Linnaeus’s two-word system for naming organisms is called
a.
 taxonomic evolution.
c.
 Greek polynomials.
b.
 Genus species.
d.
 binomial nomenclature.
 25.
In the Linnaean system of classification, the level that identifies one unique organism is the
a.
 kingdom.
c.
 genus.
b.
 family.
d.
 species.
 26.
The largest division that a group of organisms can belong to is a
a.
 domain.
c.
 genus.
b.
 class.
d.
 kingdom.
 27.
Placement in each level of classification is based on
a.
 specific characteristics.
c.
 shared characteristics.
b.
 general characteristics.
d.
 different characteristics.
 28.
Similar genera are grouped into a(n)
a.
 phylum.
c.
 family.
b.
 class.
d.
 order.
 29.
Analogous structures
a.
 have a common size in organisms.
b.
 perform the same function in organisms.
c.
 have the same structure in organisms.
d.
 evolve from a common ancestor.
 30.
Traditional systematics emphasizes the importance of
a.
 derived characteristics.
c.
 similar characteristics.
b.
 unique characteristics.
d.
 compared characteristics.
 31.
Similar features that evolve through convergent evolution are called
a.
 analogous characters.
c.
 environmental characters.
b.
 homologous characters.
d.
 genetic characters.
 32.
Convergent evolution produces analogous characters in different species as the result of
a.
 similar environments.
c.
 sharing a common ancestor.
b.
 different environments.
d.
 shared derived characters.
 33.
A phylogenetic tree differs from a cladogram in that a phylogenetic tree
a.
 hypothesizes the time at which each group of organisms evolved.
b.
 also indicates the new characteristics that evolved with each group of organisms
c.
 only illustrates hypothesized relationships among groups of organisms.
d.
 predicts the next group of organisms that is expected to evolve.
 34.
Studies of fossils of dinosaurs and birds show that
a.
 feathers may not be an important difference between dinosaurs and birds.
b.
 dinosaurs can be considered to be modern descendents of birds.
c.
 the anatomies of the dinosaurs and birds are unrelated.
d.
 dinosaurs and birds share many analogous characters.
 35.
A model used by biologists to represent evolutionary history among species is called a
a.
 phylogram.
c.
 histogram.
b.
 cladogram.
d.
 parallelogram.
 36.
Derived characters are traits
a.
 that are shared by all species.
b.
 that originated in a common ancestor.
c.
 found in closely related species.
d.
 found in distantly related species.
 37.
During Linnaeus’ time, scientists divided all living organisms into
a.
 five phyla.
c.
 three domains.
b.
 four families.
d.
 two kingdoms.
 38.
Sponges are animals that were once classified as
a.
 bacteria.
c.
 plants.
b.
 fungi.
d.
 protists.
 39.
Which of the following characteristics was used to reclassify sponges?
a.
 body type
c.
 cell walls
b.
 cell type
d.
 nutrition
 40.
The kingdoms Eubacteria and Archaebacteria were once grouped in a kingdom called
a.
 Protista.
c.
 Monera.
b.
 Animalia.
d.
 Plantae.
 41.
Four of the kingdoms include eukaryotes and the other two include
a.
 plants.
c.
 animals.
b.
 fungi.
d.
 prokaryotes.
 42.
Which of the following is not a characteristic used to differentiate kingdoms?
a.
 cell type
c.
 nutrition
b.
 root system
d.
 body type
 43.
Protista is an example of a
a.
 kingdom.
c.
 genus.
b.
 class.
d.
 species.
 44.
Which two kingdoms contain both unicellular and multicellular organisms?
a.
 Archaea and Animalia
c.
 Animalia and Fungi
b.
 Protists and Bacteria
d.
 Protista and Fungi
 45.
One difference between plants and animals is that plants are
a.
 prokaryotic and animals are eukaryotic.
b.
 eukaryotic and animals are prokaryotic.
c.
 autotrophs and animals are heterotrophs.
d.
 heterotrophs and animals are autotrophs.
 

Completion
Complete each statement.
 46.
The current system used for naming organisms was developed by ____________________.
 47.
The two-word system for naming organisms is called _________________________.
 48.
The scientific name of an organism gives biologists a common way of ____________________ regardless of their native languages.
 49.
All names assigned to organisms under the Linnaean system are in the ____________________ language.
 50.
The unique two-word name for a species is its ____________________ name.
 51.
All living things are grouped into one of three ____________________.
 52.
There are ____________________ levels of classification in the modern classification system.
 53.
A kingdom contains many ____________________.
 54.
Classes with similar characteristics are assigned to a(n) ____________________.
 55.
Each level of classification is based on ____________________ shared by all the organisms it contains.
 56.
Homo habilis, Homo erectus, and Homo sapiens all belong to the same ____________________.
 57.
Traditionally, scientists have used differences in appearance and ____________________ to classify organisms.
 58.
Unlike cladistics, traditional systematics places more ____________________ on some traits than on others.
 59.
Analogous structures are found in ____________________ taxa as a result of similar environmental conditions.
 60.
The type of evolution that results in similar characteristics found in different organisms as the result of selection within similar environments is called ____________________ evolution.
 61.
The evolutionary history of a species is called its ____________________.
 62.
Shared derived characters are found in organisms that once shared a(n) ____________________ ancestor.
 63.
A method of analysis that reconstructs phylogenies by inferring relationships based on shared characteristics is called ____________________.
 64.
A model developed by systematists that uses shared derived characters to show the evolutionary history of different organisms is called a(n) ____________________.
 65.
Cladistics is used to determine the ____________________ in which different groups of organisms evolved.
 66.
Animals that appear early on a cladogram do not share as many of the same ____________________ traits as the animals that appear later on the cladogram.
 67.
Modern systematic biologists use the ____________________ rate of DNA mutations like a “molecular clock.”
 68.
Bacteria have strong exterior cell walls made of ____________________.
 69.
An organism made of many cells that are permanently associated and that coordinate their activities is called a(n) ____________________ organism.
 70.
Eukaryotes that are not fungi, plants, or animals are called ____________________.


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