Taxonomy is the branch of science that focuses on the classification of living things. At
the heart of this endeavor is nomenclature; that is, the scientific names that are applied to groups of living things. A
Swedish naturalist named Carl
Linnaeus devised a hierarchical system for assigning latinized names to organisms. In the original system, the highest
ranking group was the "Kingdom", which at the time included only two names: "Animalia" for animals, and "Plantae" for plants.
The next highest ranking name group was "Phylum", followed by "Class", "Order", "Family", "Genus", and "Species". Biology
students are sometimes taught a catchy mnemonic phrase to remember the sequence of these ranks, such as "King Phillip Came
Over From Greater Spain", among others.
One of the unique and enduring aspects of the Linnaean scientific nomenclatural system is that it is "binomial"; that is,
each species is referenced by both its Genus and Species names together. For example, Linnaeus placed humans in the genus
Homo, and within Homo he assigned the species name sapiens, so the complete scientific name for humans is the binomial, Homo
sapiens. More?
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Species Accounts
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General Resources
Taxonomic Services Description: This webpage offers taxonomic services, data resources, and tools for Hawaiian and Pacific Basin
taxonomy. Publisher:Bernice Pauahi Bishop Museum and the Pacific Basin Information Node Date Verified: 2003-12-23
Bernice Pauahi Bishop Museum Description: The Bishop Museum has been one of the primary repositories of Hawaiian and Pacific Basin natural history
and cultural information since 1891. Their collection is unrivalled and the scientists and curators of the museum continue to
do research and collect information, specimens and artifacts. Publisher: Bernice Pauahi Bishop Museum Date Verified: 2003-12-23 Related Topics:Amphibians & Reptiles,
Birds,
Fishes,
Mammals,
Marine Invertbrates,
Other Invertebrates,
Plants, Algae & Fungi
Integrated Taxonomic Information System Description: The ITIS website offers authoritative taxonomic information on plants, animals, fungi, and microbes of
North America and the world Publisher: U.S. Department of Agriculture Date Verified: 2003-12-23
Global Biodiversity Information Facility Description:The GBIF website provides access to biodiversity data held in natural history museum collections,
libraries and databanks around the world. Publisher: Global Biodiversity Information Facility Date Verified: 2003-12-23
Taxonomic Data Working Group Description: The TDWG website provides an international forum for biological data projects, and includes conference
new, information about data standards, and discussion forums. Publisher: International Union of Biological Sciences Date Verified: 2003-12-23
International Commission for Zoological Nomenclature Description: The ICZN website provides access to the system for ensuring that every animal has a unique and
universally accepted scientific name. Users may check standards and propose new scientific names. Publisher: International Trust for Zoological Nomenclature Date Verified: 2003-12-23
International Code of Botanical Nomenclature Description: The ICBN website provides access to the International Code of Botanical Nomenclature, an important
taxonomic reference source for plants. Publisher: International Association for Plant Taxonomy Date Verified: 2003-12-23
List of Bacterial Names with Standing in Nomenclature Description: There is no official classification of bacteria, but the names given to bacteria are regulated. The LBSN
website provides access to the International Code of Nomenclature of Bacteria (Bacteriological Code), which contains General
Considerations, Principles, Rules and Recommendations which govern the way in which the names of bacteria are to be used. Publisher: J.P. Euzéby Date Verified: 2003-12-23
BIOSIS Systematics, Taxonomy &
Nomenclature Description: The BIOSIS website offers links to information about taxonomy, publications, research, taxonomy tools,
and much more. Publisher: BIOSIS Date Verified: 2003-12-23
Management Plans
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Educational Resources
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Images
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Regulations/Legislation
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Databases
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Computer Applications
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Organizations/Researchers
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This NBII site is developed and maintained by the
Pacific Basin Information Node of the U.S. Geological Survey
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