Examples
Classifications of five species follow: the fruit fly so familiar in genetics laboratories (Drosophila melanogaster), humans (Homo sapiens), the peas used by Gregor Mendel in his discovery of genetics (Pisum sativum), the "fly agaric" mushroom Amanita muscaria, and the bacterium Escherichia coli. The eight major ranks are given in bold; a selection of minor ranks are given as well.
| Rank | Fruit fly | Human | Pea | Fly Agaric | E. coli |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Domain | Eukarya | Eukarya | Eukarya | Eukarya | Bacteria |
| Kingdom | Animalia | Animalia | Plantae | Fungi | Bacteria |
| Phylum or Division | Arthropoda | Chordata | Magnoliophyta | Basidiomycota | Proteobacteria |
| Subphylum or subdivision | Hexapoda | Vertebrata | Magnoliophytina | Agaricomycotina | |
| Class | Insecta | Mammalia | Magnoliopsida | Agaricomycetes | Gammaproteobacteria |
| Subclass | Pterygota | Theria | Rosidae | Agaricomycetidae | |
| Order | Diptera | Primates | Fabales | Agaricales | Enterobacteriales |
| Suborder | Brachycera | Haplorrhini | Fabineae | Agaricineae | |
| Family | Drosophilidae | Hominidae | Fabaceae | Amanitaceae | Enterobacteriaceae |
| Subfamily | Drosophilinae | Homininae | Faboideae | Amanitoideae | |
| Genus | Drosophila | Homo | Pisum | Amanita | Escherichia |
| Species | D. melanogaster | H. sapiens | P. sativum | A. muscaria | E. coli |
- Table notes
- The ranks of higher taxa, especially intermediate ranks, are prone to revision as new information about relationships is discovered. For example, the traditional classification of primates (class Mammalia — subclass Theria — infraclass Eutheria — order Primates) has been modified by new classifications such as McKenna and Bell (class Mammalia — subclass Theriformes — infraclass Holotheria) with Theria and Eutheria assigned lower ranks between infraclass and the order Primates. See mammal classification for a discussion. These differences arise because there are only a small number of ranks available and a large number of branching points in the fossil record.
- Within species further units may be recognised. Animals may be classified into subspecies (for example, Homo sapiens sapiens, modern humans) or morphs (for example Corvus corax varius morpha leucophaeus, the Pied Raven). Plants may be classified into subspecies (for example, Pisum sativum subsp. sativum, the garden pea) or varieties (for example, Pisum sativum var. macrocarpon, snow pea), with cultivated plants getting a cultivar name (for example, Pisum sativum var. macrocarpon 'Snowbird'). Bacteria may be classified by strains (for example Escherichia coli O157:H7, a strain that can cause food poisoning).
- Mnemonics are available at mnemonic-device.eu and thefreedictionary.com.
Read more about this topic: Taxonomic Ranks
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