Wednesday, January 5, 2011

Biodiversity Lesson 1


Here are 2 unique Australian species. What are they?












     Task 1 (30 minutes)


Work in groups to conduct online research to the following questions:
a) What is the modern classification system used by biologists?

b) How are organisms classified? What is the basis of classification? (refer to the 2 unique Australian species)

c) How did the modern classification system come about? Who were the biologists who contributed to this area of study?

d) What other key characteristics are there to describe the modern classification system?

Presentation


Task 2 (25 minutes)

Review the key characteristics of the organisms in the 5 kingdoms.

Group 1 – Monera, Protista, Fungi
Group 2 – Plantae
Group 3, 4 & 5 – Animalia (Invertebrates & Vertebrates)

Post your group research in the science blog.


Task 3 (Homework, Individual)
Read the post uploaded by the other groups.

Select 3 groups of organisms and provide 3 facts that were not mentioned in the group’s research. Post your findings in the comments section.


Task 4 (Homework, Reflection, Individual)

1.                  What is biodiversity?
2.                 In one or two sentences, explain why biodiversity is important to us.
3.                 What is the key understanding of this lesson?












20 comments:

  1. a) Scientific Classification
    Sources
    http://www.wisegeek.com/in-biology-what-is-scientific-classification.htm
    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/biological_classification
    b) Organisms are classified based on shared physcial characteristics
    Source
    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/biological_classification
    c)The modern classification system has its root in work of Carolous Linnaeus, but has since been revised to improve consistency with the Darwinian principle of common descent. The contributors to it include Linnaeus, Haeckel, Chatton, Copeland, Whittaker, Woose et al revised it twice and finally Cavalier Smith.
    Source
    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/biological_classification
    d)The key characteristics are the 5 kingdom system and the 3 domain system.

    ReplyDelete
  2. a : modern biologists use Whittaker's 5 kingdoms, and
    b:animalia kingdom: they are vertebrates and invertebrates.
    c: carolus Linnaeus founded Taxonomy.
    d:we are currently using Whittaker's idea of the five kingdoms

    ReplyDelete
  3. Q1.
    a) It is the 5 Kingdoms of Life. They are Animalia, Plantae, Fungi, Protista, Monera.
    bi) They are classified by their different species.
    bii) They are classified according to their physical characteristics.
    ci) This came about when Early Greeks tried to classified the living things.
    cii) THe biologists were Carolus Linnaeus, Ernest Haeckel, Édouard Chatton, Herbert Copeland and finally Robert Whittaker.
    d) Means of Locomotion and the Different Habitat.

    Done By: Bernard, Nadiah, Bing Han and Wei Chern

    ReplyDelete
  4. The modern classification system used by biologists is known as the biological classification system / Taxonomy made by Carolus Linnaeus

    They are classified according to Life, Domain, Kingdom, Phylum, Class, Order, Family, Genus, Species

    The modern classification system came about from the works of the biologist Carolus Linnaeus. The Five Kingdom system was developed by L. Margulis and K. V. Schwartz.

    The Five Kingdom system was developed by L. Margulis and K. V. Schwartz.
    They can be compared using DNA


    Casandra, Khim, Azeem, Brandon

    ReplyDelete
  5. Source: http://www.davidlnelson.md/Cazadero/FiveKingdoms.htm
    Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kingdom_(biology)

    ReplyDelete
  6. Mosses
    1)All mosses need water to complete their life cycles.
    2)Water passes from cell to cell by osmosis. They are only a few cells thick.
    3)Mosses do not have true leaves or stems. Their leaf-like structures are called phyllids
    Source:http://science.jrank.org/pages/4456/Moss-Moss-characteristics.html, www.bvsd.org/CHARACTERISTICS%20OF%20MOSSES.pdf

    Arachnids
    1)Their body consists of two main part: a fused head and thorax, and an abdomen.
    2)Most arachnids live on land and breathe by means of book lungs.
    3)Most are flesh-eating predators. They feed by piercing the body of their prey and directly consuming its body fluids or by releasing digestive secretions that predigest the food before they eat it.
    Source: http://www.scienceclarified.com/Al-As/Arachnids.html

    Angiosperms
    1)The angiosperm is a flowering plant.
    2)The angiosperm structure has ten major parts:
    -petal
    -stigma
    -anther
    -style
    -sepal
    -ovule
    -receptacle
    -ovary
    -pedicel
    -filament
    3) Angiosperms can be both dicot or monocot. Dicot meaning that the flower has the stamens and the pistils in separate flows, either on the same plant or on different plants. Monocot meaning that the flower has both the stamens and the pistils on the same flower. To see examples look at the Microsoft Illustration on dicot and monocot plants.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Task 3:
    Mammals:
    #1. ALL mammals have hair/fur on their skin
    #2. The platypus and spiny ant eater are the only mammals that lay eggs
    #3. They take care of their young after giving birth to them

    Mosses:
    #1. Water is needed for mosses to complete a full life cycle.
    #2. Mosses have leaf-like structures called phyllids that make some people think they have real leaves and stems.
    #3. Water passes through the cells of mosses (which are a few cells thick) by osmosis to keep them alive.

    Insecta:
    #1. All insects lay eggs
    #2. Some insects carry harmful deseases
    #3. All insects have exoskeletons

    ReplyDelete
  8. Task 3
    Crustacean:
    1: Some are parasitic( e.g. fish lice)
    2: Majority is shrimps and crabs
    3: Taxonomic rank of subphylum(in between phylum and class)

    Cnidaria
    1: Taxonomic rank of phylum
    2: Swim in a form of jet propulsion
    3: Able to regenerate allowing them to recover from injury and to reproduce asexually.

    Arachnid
    1: Invertebrates
    2: Taxonomic rank is subphylum
    3: Some arachnids are parasites

    ReplyDelete
  9. This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
  10. *Task 3*


    #1 Mammals

    -Most mammals have varied teeth types including molars, premolars, incisors and canines. The incisors are used for cutting, molars and premolars for shearing or grinding and canines for tearing. Mammals chew their food and make it ready for a quick digestion.

    -All mammals are vertebrates

    -All the mammals possess a diaphragm, a sheet of tendons and muscles that divides the body cavity into two sections. Lungs and heart are in the upper section, while liver, stomach, intestine and kidneys are in the lower section.


    #2 Mollusks
    -Mollusks evolution began more than 500 million years ago, during the Cambrian period.

    -All mollusks possess a fleshy mantle. Some mollusk use this mantle to produce a shell by absorbing calcium carbonate and other ingredients from their habitat and food and secreting it in an orderly fashion to form a shell house.  Mollusks keep adding to this shell and keep it under repair for its entire life.

    -Mollusks reproduce sexually


    #3 Ferns
    -fern was one of the first plants on Earth, found as fossils in rocks 400 million years old.

    -Ferns belong to a group of plants called pteridophytes

    -Currently more than 10,000 species of fern alive.

    ReplyDelete
  11. Mammals
    1. They are vertebrate.
    2. They can be monotremes(lay eggs), marsupials(carry their carry during early infancy) or placentals(give birth to young alive).
    3. The females have mammary glands.

    Adapted from:
    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mammal

    Arachnid
    1. They are invertebrate.
    
2. Most of them are terrestrial.

    3. Some inhabit freshwater environments.
    Adapted from:
    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arachnid

    Reptiles
    1.They are tetrapods, either having four limbs or evolved from four-limbed ancestors.
    2.They feed their young various plants.
    3.They do take care of their young.
    Adapted from:
    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reptile

    ReplyDelete
  12. Task 3:

    1. Cnidaria
    -They have specialised cells called cindocytes that they use mainly to capture prey
    - They prey on organisms as small as planktons and as big as several times larger than themselves
    - They have a simple nervous system
    Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cnidaria

    2. Myriapoda
    -Most of them live in humid environments
    -Many of the species has repugnatorial glands, which are glands that secrete foul-tasting compounds and is used as a defense against predators.
    =They can be classified as Symphyla and Pauropoda (tiny arthropods), or Chilopoda (True centipedes).
    Source: http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/arthropoda/uniramia/myriapoda.html

    3. Mammals
    -They are vertebrates (animals with backbones)
    -They have lungs
    -They have one single bone comprising their lower jaw
    Source: http://www.suite101.com/content/what-is-a-mammal-a59019 and http://ezinearticles.com/?Characteristics-of-Mammals&id=244501

    ReplyDelete
  13. Mammals:
    #1. Most mammals have seven cervical vertebrae (bones in the neck)
    #2. Most mammals are endothermic (warm blooded)
    #3. Mammals evolved from four-legged ancestors
    Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mammal

    Reptiles:
    #1. Most reptiles are carnivorous
    #2. Reptiles were the outset of classification grouped with amphibians
    #3. Most mammals have to hold their breath when swallowing
    Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reptile

    Myriapoda:
    #1. Myriapods are most abundant in moist forests
    #2. Most myriapods produce noxious secretions (often containing benzoquinones) which can cause temporary blistering and discolouration of the human skin
    #3. During mating, male myriapods produce a packet of sperm, or spermatophore, which they must transfer to the female externally
    Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Myriapoda

    ReplyDelete
  14. Ferns:
    1) Spores are contained in sacs called sporangia
    2) There are many kind of ferns such as
    - climbing ferns
    - aquatic ferns
    - tree ferns
    - filmy ferns with leaves just one cell thick
    - epiphytic ferns
    - ferns of a more conventional herbaceous habit.
    3) Among the group of ferns, there is the sporophyte which is the dominant generation and there is the gametophyte which is short-lived
    source: http://www.cavehill.uwi.edu/FPAS/bcs/bl14apl/pter2.htm

    Reptiles:
    1) Reptiles do not have an aquatic larval stage
    2) The Squamata which has lizards, snakes, and worm lizards have the most number of species in the reptiles group
    3) They are mostly carnivores
    source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reptile

    Mammals:
    1) Mammals have 3 middle ear bones called the malleus, incus, and stapes
    2) The milk that is used to feed the young is produced in modified sweat glands that are called mammary glands.
    3) They are a class of air breathing animals
    source:http://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/mammals/Groups.shtml

    ReplyDelete
  15. 1) Monera
    -These organisms are the simplest prokaryotic cell structures.
    -The Monera cell structure lacks nuclei and many other cell organelles.
    -The genetic material DNA is contained in the cytoplasm called nucleoid.

    2)Flatworms
    -Many are hermaphroditic (with both male and female sex organs) and practice self-fertilization.
    -Mostly they feed on animals and other smaller life forms.
    -Flatworms are very delicate and tear easily when handled

    3)Arachnids
    -Arachnids has exoskeletons
    -The arachnid body is divided into two parts: anterior and posterior
    -Arachnids are usually predaceous

    ReplyDelete
  16. Task 4:

    Biodiversity is the various forms of life or organisms found throughout an ecosystem or even an entire planet.

    Biodiversity is important to us as it keeps and maintain the cycle of life in our planet to continue as per normal so we would be able to live and survive.

    The keyunderstanding of this lesson is to be able to understand the various forms of life that are form and learn from them. Learn about from where it started, and why and how they are classified.

    ReplyDelete
  17. 1. Biodiversity is the variation of life forms in an ecosystem or an entire planet

    2. Biodiversity is important as it helps us to maintain an ecosystem so as to stabilize it,so there woud not be more predators or more prey,so there is a constant and fair amount of food in an ecosystem.

    3.The key understanding of this lesson is to teach us the different forms of life and learn what they are,how they are classified and why they are unique in their own way.

    ReplyDelete
  18. Biodiversity is the different kinds of life forms in an ecosystem.

    Biodiversity is important as it ensures that the planet is able to survive and balances the ecosystem.

    The key understanding about this lesson is to understand how life forms in the planet is being classified.

    ReplyDelete
  19. What is biodiversity?

    Biodiversity is the variability of all living organisms (including animal and plant species) of the genes of all these organisms, and the terrestrial, aquatic and marine ecosystems.


    In one or two sentences, explain why biodiversity is important to us.

    With every breath we take, we consume oxygen produced by forests and seas.  Every mouthful of food has been living material that relied on soil, microbes and plants to grow thus it provides us with the basics of life.


    What is the key understanding of this lesson?

    All living things of Earth used to be on its own but slowly it is being classified by the different kingdoms of life from 2 basic kingdoms of Plantae and Animalia till now the 5 Kingdoms, Animalia, Plantae, Monera, Protista and Fungi.

    ReplyDelete
  20. What is biodiversity?
    Biodiversity is the variation of life forms within a given ecosystem, biome, or for the entire Earth./ Biodiversity is the wide range of different life forms
    Source: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biodiversity

    In one or two sentences, explain why biodiversity is important to us.
    If there is only one kingdom or species in the world, there would be no other organism to depend on and it will die.

    3. What is the key understanding of this lesson?
    Refreshing our minds on the different kingdoms, and learning about the dichotomous key (Classification of organisms)

    Yan Jin

    ReplyDelete