Name: Biology Teacher:

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Greenhead College Biology Department

A-level Biology Year 1

11: Classification
Answer Pack
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Assessment Objectives

Students will not be required to calculate standard deviations in written papers.

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The Principles of Classification

About 1.8 million different species on earth have so far been identified and named
and there are probably many, many more yet to be discovered (possibly up to 9
million).

Classification – is the way in which living organisms are divided into groups

Taxonomy – is the scientific practice of grouping organisms based on shared

characteristics

Modern Classification Systems

• Group organisms using many different sources of evidence (e.g. fossil

records, cell ultrastructure, biochemistry, molecular biology, behaviour), in
addition to easily observable features.

New technologies can result in changes in the classification of organisms (covered

later in this pack).

Modern classification systems are also:

• Hierarchical This means that the system consists of:

➢ smaller groups within larger groups
➢ no overlap between groups.

• Phylogenetic. This means the system is based on the evolutionary history

of organisms, i.e. their common ancestry.

Note: you should learn these definitions

Hierarchical System
The most commonly used system comprises of eight main taxonomic ranks:

• Domain
• Kingdom
• Phylum (pl. = phyla)
• Class
• Order
• Family
• Genus (pl. = genera)
• Species

They are listed in descending order of size:

Domain is the largest group, containing the largest number of organisms and
species contain the fewest organisms.
Non-overlapping means each organism can only appear in one group at a
particular taxonomic level.

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The following mnemonic may help you remember the sequence of categories in
biological classification:

▪ Did King Phillip Come Over For German Sausages?

▪ Delicious King Prawn Curry Or Fat Greasy Sausages?

Each group is called a taxon (plural = taxa).

All living organisms are currently classified into:

One of 3 domains: Archaea, Bacteria, Eukaryotes

One of six kingdoms: Archaea, Bacteria, Protoctista, Fungi, Plants and Animals

The table below shows the classification of the wolf and domestic dog.

lupus

The biological name of each species is derived from its genus and species names
(a binomial naming system):

• The first is the genus name and always has a capital letter
• The second is the species name and always has a small letter

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Eg. Homo sapiens

Genus species

The full name is printed in italics or underlined if handwritten

➢ Using the diagram on the previous page, write out the biological name for a
wolf.

Canis lupus

Question

Rana temporaria is the frog commonly found in Britain. Complete the blanks in the
table below.

Domain Eukarya
Kingdom Animalia
Phylum Chordata
Class Amphibia
Order Anura
Family Ranidae
Genus Rana
Species temporaria

Phylogenetic system

• This shows the evolutionary relationship between organisms.

• It looks at similarities and differences in structure and function.
• The relationships are usually represented by a diagram called a
phylogenetic tree.
• The oldest species are at the base of the tree and the most recent ones are
represented by the ends of the tree.
• Each branch represents where divergence occurred (i.e. where a common
ancestor evolves to become new species).

• The closer the branches, the closer the evolutionary relationship,

therefore the more recently they shared a common ancestor

(More details on clarifying evolutionary relationships are found later in this pack)

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Question
The figure below shows a phylogenetic tree for birds and certain reptiles.

1. Which group is the closest relative of the snakes?

Lizards

2. Are dinosaurs more closely related to crocodiles or birds?

Birds

3. Suggest a reason why dinosaurs are not shown along the time line like all
other groups
They are extinct so don’t extend on time line as far as the present day

Species

Definition
A group of organisms with similar characteristics that can interbreed to
produce fertile offspring

Two organisms belong to the same species if:

1. they have the potential to breed with each other

2. their offspring are fertile.

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You can see the differences in the external appearance of donkeys and horses and
although they can interbreed, their offspring (mules) are sterile.

In captivity, the horse and the donkey will mate and

produce offspring

Donkey Horse

Mules are sterile

and the inability of
the horse and the
donkey to produce
fertile offspring
classifies them as
different species Mule

Lions and tigers can mate to produce ligers or tigons which are similarly infertile.

Question
Thinking back to what you know from GCSE, suggest a reason why the cells of a
mule, which have 63 chromosomes, are unable to undergo meiosis and so cannot
produce gametes.

In meiosis chromosomes pair up and because there is an odd number of

chromosomes, this can’t happen.

(You will learn the details of meiosis in pack 12)

Problems in classifying organisms as distinct species

All systems of classification are developed by humans for their convenience. It is one
area of science where there is very little agreement. Systems and ideas constantly
change as new evidence and techniques come to light. Consider the points below:

• Life probably evolved around 3.5 billion years ago and the extinct species
greatly outnumber the living ones.
• Most species did not leave fossils and even when fossils have been found,
they are often incomplete and not all features can be observed.

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• If the organisms are only known from fossil records, we cannot test whether
they can interbreed and produce fertile offspring.
• There is considerable variation within any one species.
• Groups of organisms that are isolated from each other, e.g. by oceans, may
be classified as different species. However, they may turn out to be the same
species if their ability to interbreed is tested (often difficult to test in practice).
• The ability to interbreed cannot be tested on organisms that use asexual
reproduction

Courtship Behaviour

Courtship behaviour is used to identify individuals as members of the same or

different species.
• Courtship behaviour is innate ie. it is genetically determined. All members of
the same species are genetically programmed to show exactly the same
courtship behaviour because they share the same genes.
• Members of different species show different behaviours.

Why is it so important that an individual mates with a member of its own species?

Only members of the same species can produce fertile offspring.

Courtship behaviour has a number of different functions which include:

Species recognition Allows one member of a species to

recognise other members of the same
species. This ensures they only mate
with individuals from the same species
so fertile offspring are produced.

Formation of a pair bond This keeps the male and female

together which increases the survival
chances of the offspring

Synchronising mating This identifies when individuals are at

the correct stage of their reproductive
cycle so mating only occurs when there
is the maximum probability of egg and
sperm meeting.

Stimulating production of gametes Stimulates production/release of

gametes.

Identifying a mate that is sexually Prevents mating with a sexually

mature immature individual which doesn’t
produce gametes.

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Courtship behaviour could include:,

• A display of breeding colours
• A dance
• A song.

The form it takes may depend on the habitat the species live in. Birds that live in
woodland areas, or nocturnal animals, may rely more heavily on song because
visual displays cannot be seen clearly.

Questions – Courtship Behaviour

1. A female does not exhibit a typical behavioural response during courtship. State
two things that this suggests about the female.

she may be of a different species

she may be sexually immature
she may not be at a fertile stage in her cycle

2. Examine the table below showing the courtship behaviour of six male ducks, in
the order in which they do them

Duck A Shakes Shakes Grunt- Flicks Raises Turns to

tail bill whistles head head/tail female
Duck B Shakes Shakes Grunt- Flicks Raises Turns to
tail bill whistles head head/tail female
Duck C Shakes Shakes Grunt- Flicks Turns to _
tail bill whistles head female
Duck D Shakes Shakes Grunt- Nods & Raises Turns to
tail bill whistles swims head/tail female
Duck E Shakes Shakes Flicks Grunt- Raises Turns to
tail bill head whistles head/tail female
Duck F Flicks Shakes Nods & Grunt- Turns to _
head tail swims whistles female

a. How many different species of duck are represented in the table?

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b. Suggest why the courtship sequences provide evidence that ducks B and C are
closely related

most similar set of actions, in most similar sequence

just one element missing/different for C

c. Which duck is only distantly related to the others? Give a reason for your answer.

F- sequence differs most from others

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Investigating Diversity and Clarifying Evolutionary Relationships

Different ways of investigating genetic diversity and looking for evolutionary

relationships between species include:

1. The frequency of measurable or observable characteristics

2. The base sequence of DNA
3. The base sequence of mRNA
4. The amino acid sequence of the proteins encoded by DNA and mRNA.

1. Comparing the frequency of measurable or observable characteristics

Before modern gene technology, genetic diversity could only be investigated through
careful detailed observations of the anatomy and physiology of different individuals.

The animals shown above all belong to the phylum Arthropoda and class Insecta.

➢ How many observable differences can you identify which might show they are
different orders/families/species?

Different colour, leg size, wing shape, antennae size, body shape, colour pattern

Observable characteristics can be influenced by the environment and are often

coded for by more than one gene so do not directly show differences in an
organism’s DNA.

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2. Comparing the base sequence of DNA

• Members of the same species will have very similar DNA base sequences.
• As populations evolve, random mutations will accumulate and cause genetic
variation.
• Species that have closer evolutionary relationships and share a more recent
common ancestor will have more similar base sequences of DNA in a
particular gene.

Human A C T C C G G C C A G

Rhesus A C T C C G G C G A G
Monkey
Dog A T T C T G G C C T G

The table above shows the DNA base sequences for a short section of a gene from
3 different species. What does the data suggest about the evolutionary relationships
between humans and the other species?

Humans and rhesus monkeys only differ by 1 base so are most closely related and
share a more recent common ancestor.
Humans and dogs differ by 3 bases so are less closely related and share a more
distant common ancestor.

3. Comparing the base sequence of mRNA

The more similar the base sequence of mRNA, the more closely related organisms
are so they share a more recent common ancestor

4. Comparing the amino acid sequence of the proteins encoded by DNA and
mRNA
As the DNA base sequence ultimately codes for the sequence of amino acids in
proteins, organisms that share a more recent common ancestor and are more
closely related will have more similar amino acid sequences in a specific
protein.

The following table shows the number of amino acid differences in the protein
Cytochrome C of different organisms when compared to humans. This protein is
needed for respiration.

➢ Why is this protein chosen to use for comparing amino acid sequences in
phylogenetic studies?

All organisms respire and so all organisms will have this protein.

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What does the data suggest about the evolutionary relationships between humans
and the other organisms? Use evidence to support your answer.

Chimps and humans have identical sequences suggesting they are most closely
related, i.e. share a more recent common ancestor.
Yeast has 42 amino acids different suggesting it is most distantly related.

A student who looked at these results concluded that cows and pigeons are more
closely related to each other than to any of the other animals.
Suggest one reason why this might not be a valid conclusion.

• Compared with humans/not compared with each other

• Differences may be at different positions/different amino acids affected/does
not show where the differences are.

Why should any conclusions about evolutionary relationships from a study of

amino acid sequences be treated with caution?

• Only a short section of the polypeptide has been analysed

• Amino acid sequences may be the same but the DNA/RNA base sequence
may actually be different, due to the degenerate nature of the genetic code.

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Measuring Variation

When measuring a characteristic that shows variation, you usually need to collect
data that is quantitative and then analyse it mathematically, which enables valid
comparisons to be made.

Samples may need to be taken. They should be:

• Large – large samples are more representative of the population than small
samples and minimise the influence of chance on the results.

• Random - this avoids bias and ensures that every member of the
population has an equal chance of being included in the sample

Once data has been collected the mean and standard deviation can be calculated.

Mean

• This is the average, a measure of the central tendency of the data.

• The mean value of a variable such as height gives a good indication of a

population’s relative height compared to other sample populations. It does not
however, give any indication of the distribution of height in the sample.

• The mean can be misleading. A population of individuals with an equal

number of people 170 or 190cm tall would have a mean height of 180_ cm,
and yet no individual would be this height.

Standard Deviation
You will not be asked to calculate standard deviation in an exam but you do
need to be able to interpret SD values.

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• Standard deviation is a measure of the spread of values about the mean and
thus indicates the extent of variation a population shows.

• Data is more similar if the standard deviation is smaller, i.e. there is less
variation.

• SD can be indicative of the reliability of the data – the smaller the SD the more
precise the data is.

• SD is not the same as the range. Using SD is more valid because it involves use
of all the values but will reduce the impact of extreme data points
(anomalies), unlike the range, which is just the difference between the highest
and lowest values.

• Standard deviation is often given alongside the mean in the format mean ±
SD.

Eg. If the mean was 32 and the SD was 2.5 this can be expressed as 32 ± 2.5.
This tells us that most of the values lie between 29.5 to 34.5 (i.e.32-2.5 to 32+2.5).

• Standard deviation is useful for comparing two or more sets of data.

The standard deviation is calculated for each set of data.

If the standard deviations (i.e. spreads about the mean) overlap then there is
no significant difference between the means.

If there is no overlap then it is likely that there is a significant difference

between the means.

Example
Here are two small samples of heights from two populations of people

Sample one Sample two

160 165 175 156 180 166 168 167 166 168

mean = 167.2 mean = 167

SD = 10.08 SD = 1

➢ Calculate the mean value for each sample

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The SD of 10.08 for sample one means that most heights fall within ± 10.08 of the
mean. What values does this cover?

157.12 – 177.28

Which of the samples shows least variation?

Sample 2

Is there a significant difference in the heights of the two populations?

Explain your answer.

No. The standard deviations overlap (157.12 – 177.28 for sample 1 and 166 – 168
for sample 2)
There is no significant difference.

(In an exam you will need to calculate, and write down, the full spread of
values around the mean for each sample when determining if there is an
overlap in SD)

Standard Deviation Bars

Standard deviation can be shown on a graph in the form of bars, drawn above and
below the mean

mean of data set 1

mean of data set 2

(a) and (b) The standard deviations overlap so no significant difference between
the two means.
(c) No overlap so difference is likely to be significant, i.e. is not likely to be due to
chance.

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Note:
The standard deviation can be doubled (2 x SD) to give a spread about the mean in
which approx. 95% of the data lies. If this is used to compare data sets, and there is
no overlap of the 2 x SD, you can be much more confident about concluding that
there is a significant difference between the means. This is often done in scientific
investigations.

Question involving +/- 2 SD.

Sample 1 Sample 2
Mean 17 13
SD 2.4 2.2

The mean +/- 2 standard deviations includes over 95% of the data.

Use this information to consider whether the standard deviations suggest the
differences in means are likely to be due to chance.

Explain your answer, including at least one calculation.

Sample 1.

Mean +/- 2SD = 17 - (2 x 2.4) to 17 + (2 x 2.4) = 12.2 to 21.8

Sample 2.

Mean +/-2SD = 13 – (2 x 2.2) to 13 + (2 x 2.2) = 8.6 to 17.4

SD overlap so the difference in means is not significant.

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