Chapter 17 Naming and Organizing Plants and Microbes Botanical Nomenclature Nomenclature- the giving and using of names Historically, there have been two independent kinds of botanical nomenclature. 1) Common names 2) Scientific names Through the ages, humans have given organisms common names of local relevance, which often reflect appearance and usefulness. The first step to wisdom is getting things by their right names. Chinese proverb Disadvantages Theobroma fruit from the cacao tree -Wide-ranging plants often have several different names and can cause confusion. Scientific names Scientific names developed during the period from the 13 th -18 th century. The process of naming plants varied from botanist to botanist. Theobroma cacao (Malvaceae) https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/user:luisovalles Scientific names (Polynomial system) The name of a species consisted of a generic name (noun) followed by 1 or more Latin modifiers. This species description is an example of a polynomial. Ex: buttercup (Polynomial system) Ranunculus calycibus retroflexis, pedunculis falcatis, caule Erecto, foliis compositis the buttercup with bent-back sepals, curved flower stalks, erect stems and compound leaves.
Scientific names- (Binomial system) Carolus Linnaeus (1707-1779) (originally Carl von Linné) Botanists gradually adopted a set of standardized procedures for naming plants Linnaeus published a book called Philosophia Botanica Carl von Linné, Alexander Roslin, 1775. Currently owned by and displayed at the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences. Scientific names (Binomial system) Generic name: Amorphophallus Species name: titanum (specific epithet) Scientific names are generally based in classical languages such as Greek or Latin. Names of Taxa above the Genus Level Today, we have a set of formalized rules for naming plants. The International Code of Botanical Nomenclature The taxonomic rank can automatically be determined from the name.
Ginkgo (Ginkgo biloba) Scientific names (Binomial system) Two-word name consisting of: 1) Generic name 2) Specific epithet Ex: Zea mays Generic names - Generic name (genus name) is treated as a Latin noun red pine, (Pinus resinosa) white pine, (Pinus strobus) jack pine, (Pinus banksiana) Genera may include as few as one species
Specific epithet Scientific names are often written with their author or authors. The author(s) are the individual or individuals that have named the plants. Specific epithet 10 μm CS 416 (Type) 10 μm CS-759 Nannochloropsis australis M.W. Fawley, I. Jameson, and K.P. Fawley Lotus corniculatus L. Lotus heermannii (Dur. & Hilg.) Greene Generic name : Lotus The specific epithet means bearing a horn-like projection The second species was named after A.L. Heerman (Heerman s lotus) Lotus corniculatus L. The author for the specific epithet corniculatus: Lotus heermannii (Dur. & Hilg.) Greene The specific epithet was originally named by E.M. Durand and T.C. Hilgard. Parenthetical authors: Greene transferred the specific epithet heermannii from the genus Hosackia to the genus Lotus. Combining author:
Plant names also may signify subspecies, varieties or cultivars The two-part (binomial) scientific name may be followed by a subspecies name. Subspecies Zea mays subspecies mays Zea mays subspecies parviglumis Scientific names of commercial ornamental or garden plants are often followed by a variety or cultivar name. Variety https://www.facebook.com/peachpickinparadise/ Prunus persica https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/peach#/media/file: White_nectarine_and_cross_section02_edit.jpg Prunus persica var. nucipersica (or var. nectarina) Cultivar Solanum lycopersicum Pink Berkley tie-dye http://www.rareseeds.com/pink-berkeley-tie-dye-tomato/ Solanum lycopersicum Cherokee purple http://www.rareseeds.com/cherokee-purple-tomato/ Hybrid result from crossbreeding between two species or two genera. Hybrids that maintain characteristics different from their parent and do not crossbreed with parents are given their own species names. Ex: orchid hybrid Laeliocatteya Named for parent genera - Laelio and Catteya
Around the world there are many important plant collections known as herbaria (sing. herbarium). Herbaria Herbarium specimens -commonly consist of dried plants -pressed, mounted, and labeled Resources for identifying plants include identification keys Professional biologists use dichotomous keys A dichotomous key uses a series of paired mutually exclusive statements that divides a set of objects into progressively smaller subsets. Plants and other organisms are classified according to relationships. 250,000 known species of plants including: -bryophytes -lycophytes -ferns -gymnosperms -angiosperms
Plants and other organisms are classified according to relationships. Fungi, algae, and bacteria millions and millions of species How do we classify all of this diversity? Theophrastus (371 287 BC) He organized the 500 plants known by the ancient Greeks into three main categories: Plants were then classified into smaller groups based on the basis of vegetative characteristics (Ex: leaves). https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/theophrast us#/media/file:teofrasto_orto_botanic o_detail.jpg The structure of plant stems, leaves, and roots are often more strongly influenced by the environment in which it evolved. Linnaeus advanced the science of classification by using floral characteristics to organize flowering plants. Ex: Difference species of Begonia Using reproductive characteristics (flowers; fruits) and molecular evidence
Study outline for Chapter 17-Naming and Organizing Plants and Microbes Define nomenclature. Name the two independent types of botanical nomenclature. Define common name. What are the disadvantages of using common names in describing plants? During what time period were the first scientific names developed? How were plants named using the polynomial system? How are plants named using the binomial system or Linnaean system? Who was Linnaeus? Why is the Linnaean system or (binomial system) so important? What is the International Code of Botanical Nomenclature? Give an example of taxonomic rank. Use the following examples to answer the questions below. Pinus strobus L. white pine List the generic name: List the specific epithet: List the common name: List the author (write out the name): Lotus heermannii (Durand and Hilgard) Greene List the generic name: List the specific epithet: List the parenthetical authors: What did the parenthetical authors do? List the combining author: What did the combining author do? Define subspecies. Define variety. Define cultivar. Define hybrid. Match the following examples with the definitions above: -Laeliocatteya (orchid genus; parent genera Laelio and Catteya) -Prunus persica var. nectarina (common name: nectarine) -Cherokee purple tomato -Zea mays subsp. mays (common name: corn)
Study outline for Chapter 17-Naming and Organizing Plants and Microbes What is a herbarium? Describe a typical herbarium specimen? What type of information is on a herbarium specimen label? What is a dichotomous key? Who was Theophrastus? Why are reproductive characteristics, such as the structure of the flowers, used more heavily than root, stem, and leaf anatomy? What are some of the characteristics upon which modern plant classification is based?