posted on Sep, 7 2004 @ 06:07 PM
Life on Earth -- I love reading about how diverse it is!
But there are always controversies and questions. For example:
-Viruses -- are they alive? If they are alive, would they count as Monerans, or would they get their own kingdom classification?
-Are Humans Animals? Some biologists think so; others think we have advanced to the point of being more than mere Animals...
-This is the way that life evolved on Earth. Do you think the taxonomy of life on another planet in our Galaxy would be simliar to ours or possibly
very different? Is life supposed to follow a general set of rules (such as bacteria first, then plants, then ocean animals, then land animals,
then air animals, etc.) when it begins to evolve on any planet?
Also, I recently tried to sit down and make a general outline of the five kingdoms and their major phylums and classes (with a few orders thrown in
where needed), from simple to complex. Help me check and make sure I got it written down correctly!
I. Monerans
II. Protists
III. Fungi
A. Molds
B. Spores
IV. Plants
A. Mosses
B. Ferns
C. Gymnosperms
D. Angiosperms
V. Animals
A. Invertebrates
1. Sponges
2. Cnidarians
3. Flatworms
4. Roundworms
5. Annelids
6. Mollusks
7. Arthropods
a. Insects
b. Arachnids
c. Crusteaceans
8. Echinoderms
B. Vertebrates
1. Fish
2. Amphibians
3. Reptiles
4. Birds
5. Mammals
Here's the taxonomy system in breif: kingdom --> phylum --> class --> order --> family --> genus --> species
Fun fact: 70% of all the animals on Earth are Insects!