What is the Plantae Kingdom?
Plant and animal kingdoms are further classified into sub-classes with common characteristics in order to be identified with ease.
For example, flowering plants can be classified as phanerogams while non-flowering plants are known as cryptograms. Likewise, in animals, the organisms are classified based on their body shape, design, and complexity.
Some plants have differentiated reproductive organs that bear the ability to produce seeds and fruits. These plants are collectively called phanerogams. Phanerogams consist of 2 classes Gymnosperms and Angiosperms.
Class 4: Gymnosperms:
Gymno
a) naked, Sperma – seeds (in Greek)
b) Perennial, evergreen, and woody
Examples – pines, and deodars (Figure 1)
Figure 1: Gymnosperms
Class 5: Angiosperms:
1. Angio – covered; Sperma – seeds (in Greek).
2. Seeds develop in organs that are later modified into fruits. Seeds are enclosed within the fruits.
3. Embryos in seeds have leaf-like structures called cotyledons which germinate into new plants. Based on cotyledons, the plants are further divided into monocots and dicots
4. Monocots are plants with a single cotyledon. Example – paphiopedilum
5. Dicots are plants with two cotyledons. Example – Ipomoea
Figure 2: Angiosperms – monocots and dicots:
A. Monocots – Paphiopedilum B. Dicots - Ipomoea
What is Animalia Kingdom?
A criterion to classify animals:
1. Type of body design and differentiation
2. Motility
Class 1 – Porifera:
a) Commonly called sponges
b) Pori – pores, meaning the organism has holes all over the body
c) Pores help the organism circulate food and air throughout the body
d) Very minimum differentiation and tissues in the body
e) These organisms are covered with a hard skeleton-like layer outside
f) Non-motile
g) Found in seas and oceans
Examples
Spongilla
Sycon
(Figure 4)
Figure 4: Organisms belonging to class Porifera
Class 2 – Coelenterata:
a) Presence of cavity in the body
b) Body is differentiated into the outer and inner layers of cells
c) Some of these live in colonies
d) Usually found in aquatic habitat
Example – sea anemones, hydra, and jellyfish
Figure 5: Organisms belonging to class Coelenterata
Class 3 - Platyhelminthes
The body is bilaterally symmetrical
a) Also known as triploblastic – as the body is made up of three layers of cells which further differentiate into tissues
b) Little tissue formation is seen. No development of organs is observed
c) Lack of true internal body cavity or coelom
d) Body is flattened dorsoventrally - hence known as flatworms
e) Examples of organisms belonging to this class – liver flukes, planarians
Figure 6: Organisms belonging to the class Platyhelminthes:
Plantae and Animalia Kingdom Biology Homework Help