Question: how do you identify plants and animals
Keywords: characterisation, google, species
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@bates: animals and plants are identified using taxonomy. This is the science of (biological) classification – phylogenetics helps uncover the evolutionary relationships between orgnaisms – and all plants and animals are identified in the following way, usually using the Linnean system ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Linnaean_system):
Kingdom/Domain
Phylum/Division
Class
Order
Family
Genera
Species
Sub-species
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Initially, scientists identified specific animals by the way they looked, and they grouped them together based on appearance. But more recently, scientists have developed ways of identifying the genetic code of animals or plants, and that has led us to revise some of the ways we think different species are related. So the most accurate way is with genetic testing, but either way scientists will use the scheme that Mia described to organise all the relationships between animals and plants.
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But if you mean “how do you look at a plant and tell what kind it is?” the answer is you may have to look at a number of things. The shape and colour of the leaves, the structure of the flowers, what the seed-pods and seeds look like. For some plants (Eucalyptus trees are an example) you actually need ALL of those things to be sure.
Similar things apply to animals (but of course they do not have flowers and leaves 🙂 )
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