Review the key concepts, formulae, and examples before starting your quiz.
🔑Concepts
The Five Kingdom Classification was proposed by R.H. Whittaker in .
The five kingdoms are: Monera, Protista, Fungi, Plantae, and Animalia.
The main criteria for classification include: Cell structure (Prokaryotic vs Eukaryotic), Thallus organization, Mode of nutrition, Reproduction, and Phylogenetic relationships.
Kingdom Monera: Includes all prokaryotes. Cell walls are non-cellulosic, composed of polysaccharides and amino acids. They exhibit both autotrophic (chemosynthetic and photosynthetic) and heterotrophic (saprophytic or parasitic) modes of nutrition.
Kingdom Protista: Includes all unicellular eukaryotes. This kingdom forms a link between Monera and the other three multicellular kingdoms. Some possess flagella or cilia for movement.
Kingdom Fungi: Heterotrophic organisms (mostly saprophytic). Their cell walls are composed of chitin (a polymer of -acetylglucosamine) and polysaccharides. Examples include and .
Kingdom Plantae: Includes all eukaryotic chlorophyll-containing organisms. Their cell wall is primarily made of cellulose. They follow an autotrophic mode of nutrition via photosynthesis: .
Kingdom Animalia: Multicellular eukaryotes that lack cell walls. They are heterotrophic and typically ingest food (holozoic nutrition).
Viruses, Viroids, Prions, and Lichens are not included in Whittaker's Five Kingdom System of classification.
📐Formulae
💡Examples
Problem 1:
Which criteria did R.H. Whittaker use to distinguish between Kingdom Monera and Kingdom Protista, and which organism among and belongs to which kingdom?
Solution:
Criteria: Cell type (Prokaryotic vs. Eukaryotic). belongs to Kingdom Monera; belongs to Kingdom Protista.
Explanation:
Whittaker separated organisms based on cell complexity. Kingdom Monera contains prokaryotic organisms (lacking a nuclear membrane), such as the cyanobacterium . Kingdom Protista contains unicellular eukaryotic organisms (possessing a defined nucleus), such as .
Problem 2:
Calculate the ratio of Carbon, Hydrogen, and Oxygen atoms in the glucose molecule () produced by organisms in Kingdom Plantae.
Solution:
Explanation:
In the chemical formula for glucose, , the number of atoms are , , and . Dividing by the common factor , the empirical ratio is , which is .
Problem 3:
In the Five Kingdom system, why are fungi no longer classified with plants?
Solution:
Difference in cell wall composition (Chitin vs. Cellulose) and mode of nutrition (Heterotrophic vs. Autotrophic).
Explanation:
Fungi have cell walls made of chitin (), whereas plants have cellulosic cell walls. Furthermore, fungi are heterotrophic/saprophytic, while plants are autotrophic and perform photosynthesis.