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ANIMAL KINGDOM : GENERAL

Q1. What is the general term for the study of animals?
Zoology.
Q2. What are the other studies, either specific or general within zoology or biology?

Anatomy: A branch of biology, dealing with the structural formation of living things, by dissection.
Anthrozoology: Human - animal interaction.
Apiology: Study of honey bees.
Arachnology: Study of spider.
Acarology: Study of ticks and mites.
Biolgy: General term for scientific study of life.
Cryptozoology: Study for the search for animals which are believed to exist or extinct, for which conclusive evidence is not available.
Cetology: A branch of marine mammal science that studies about whales, dolphins etc.
Cellular Biology: Examines the basic building block of all life - the cell.
Chemotaxonomy: Classification of organisms by their chemical constituents.
Embryology: A study of embryos from the time of cell formation to birth, hatching or germination.
Ethology: A branch of zoology and a scientific study of animal behaviour.
Ecology: A study which examines how various organisms inter-relate.
Entomology: Study of insects.
Ethimology: Study of origin and history of worms.
Herpetology: A branch of zoology concerned with the study of reptiles and amphibians.
Ichthyology: Study of fishes.
Mammalogy: Study of mammals.
Malacology: A branch of zoology to study Mollusks a wide variety (over 1,12,000 species) of invertebrate animals like snails, squid, octobus etc.
Myrmecology: The study of ants and it's varieties.
Morphology: The study on the form or shape of an organism or part thereof.
Nuero Ethology: An evolutionary and comparative approach to the study of animal behaviour and it's underlying biological causation by the nervous system. Ornithology: Study of the birds.
Oology: Study of eggs.
Physiology: The study of the mechanical, physical and biochemical functions of living organisms - tissues and organ systems.
Paleontology: Study of the pre historic life forms on earth through the examination of fossils of living organisms.
Phylogenetics: The study of evolutionary relatedness during various groups of organisms eg: species, population etc.
Paleozoology: Deals with the recovery and identification of multicellular animal remains from geological and archaeological contexts.
Primatology: Study about the primates.
Taxonomy: The practice and science of classification of organisms.
Q3. Who is considered as the father of Taxonomy, the classification of living organisms?
Carl Von Linne (Carlos Linnaeus) - a Swedish biologist of 18th century. (1707-1778).
Q4. What is the general classification of living organisms?
(1) Plant, (2) Animal - Kingdom.
Q5. According to Carl Von Linne, the scientific classification of all living organisms are?
(1) species, (2) Genus, (3) Family, (4) Orders, (5) Classes, (6) Phylum, (7) kingdom. Phylum and kingdom are further divided into two sub classifications each.
Q6. What is a "Specie"?
It is the lowest in the classification order. Organisms having some important characteristics in common and different from others in one or more ways are called so. Eg: Cat, Monkey, House fly, Frog etc.
Q7. What are "Genus"?
Different species having certain common characteristics are called so. It is a collection of some related species and also have some common characteristics like the cat, tiger, lion, etc., - different species with common characteristics.
Q8. What is the scientific way of naming an organism?
Each organism is given two names - a generic name and a specific name. The generic name will begin with a capital letter and the specific name with small letters. Eg: Man is named Homo Sapiens; house fly is named, Musca domestica etc.
Q9. What is the present widely accepted scientific classification of the plants and animals kingdom?
1. Monera: The Bacteria, Blue-Green Algae. They are organisms with prokaryotic cells and different nutritional habits, including photosynthesis, chemosynthesis, and absorption. Reproduction is a sexual, by simple cell division. Eg: True Bacteria, Fungus like Bacteria and Blue Green Algae.
2. Protista: They are unicellular or colonial eukaryotes with different nutritional habits, reproduction in both forms - sexual/asexual, involving meosis and nuclear fusion. Mobility is by means of more advanced type of flagella. Eg: Euglenophytes, Dinoglagellates, Golden Algae, Yellow Green algae.
3. Fungi: Are multinucleate organisms, with non-photosynthetic, nutrition through absorption lacking tissue differentiation. Eg: Slime molds, Water molds, White ruts, Bread molds, Sac fungi, etc.
4. Plantae: Multicellular organisms with cells being enclosed by a rigid cell wall. Nutrition by photosynthesis with exception of a few species being absorptive. Primarily non-mobile, often anchored to the ground (substratum), including all botanical organisms.
5. Animalae: Include all protozoa and metazoan zoological organisms. These are multicellular eukaryotic organisms with cells lacking a rigid cell-wall and photosynthetic apparatus.
Q10. What are the classifications of Animal kingdom?
(1) Protozoa, (2) Metazoa.
Q11. What are Protozoa?
They are single celled microscopic organisms in which all functions are performed by and within the single cell itself. Eg: Amoeba.
Q12. What are Metazoa?
They are multicellular organisms in which cells are grouped together to form tissues, organs and systems. All the animals, including the human being come under this sub-kingdom.
Q13. Metazoa, the multicellular organism is further classified as ........?

(1) Invetebrates: The animals which do not have the vertebrae column (backbone - spine). Eg: Worms, insects, parasites etc.
(2) Vertebrates: Animals which have the vertebrae columns (Spine). Eg: Man, Horse, Fish, etc.
Q14. The invertebrates are further divided into .........?
(1) Porifera: Fixed multicellular organisms, aquatic (water borne) animals having a porous and cylindrical body. Eg: Ascom
(2) Coelenterata: Sac like multi-cellular aquatic animals or creatures with tentacles, stinging cells and posses tissues and digestive cavity. Eg: Aurelia (Jelly fish), Hydra, Obelia etc.
(3) Platyhelminthes: Parasites and free living organisms with a flat, thin and soft body and appear leaf or ribbon like. Eg: Liver fluke, Pork tapeworm, blood fluke etc. (4) Nemathylminthes: Parasites and free living organisms, with a round body and posses mouth and anus. Eg: Roundworm, Filaria, Hookworms, etc.
(5) Annelida: Free living worm like organisms having soft, round and segmented bodies (weaved with rings externally) Eg: Earthworm, Leech, Sea-mouse, etc.
(6) Anthropoda: Large group of organisms having joined feet, segmented body and an external skeleton (called exoskeleton). The are further classified into four groups viz., (A) Crustaceans: Anthropods with limbs attached to most segments. Eg: Prawn, Shrimp, etch. (B) Insects: Anthropods with three pair of legs and the body divided into three parts. Eg: Cockroach, Butterfly and Mosquito. (C) Arachnids: Anthropods with four pair of legs and the body divided into two parts. Eg: Scorpion, Spider, etc. (D) Myriapods: Anthropods with body divided into a number of similar segments with one or two pairs of legs to most segments. Eg: Centipede, Millipede.
(7) Mollusca: They are shelled organisms having an unsegmented body without appendages. They posses a ventral muscular organ called a foot for locomotion. Eg: Pond snail, slug, cuttle fish.
(8) Echinodermata: They include spiny skinned animals built on a fire radial plan. They move by numerous soft tube like structures called tube feet and are marine by habitation. Eg: Star fish, Antedon (Sea Jelly), Sea Urchin.
Q15. Which is the largest known invertebrate?
Giant Squid: Measures about 6 mtrs and the tentacles may measure upto 10 mtrs. They belong to the Mullusca Phylum classifications.
Q16. Vertebrates are and belong to ........?
Animals with vertebral column. They are classified into the main "Chordata Phylum" classification.
Q17. What are the main three characteristics of the animals under Chordata Phylum?
(1) A dorsal, hollow tubular nerve cord;
(2) A notochord which is ventral to the nerve chord and is replaced by cartilage or bone to form a vertebral column in higher vertebrates.
(3) Gill slits in the pharynx (Sharks, Rays, Saw Fish, Guitar Fish).
Q18. What are the various sub-classifications under "Chordata Phylum"?
(1) Pisces: Fishes - They are cold blooded, jawed aquatic animals. Bodies are covered by scales, respiration through gills. Eg: Sea Horse, electric fish and most other fishes.
(2) Amphibia: Frogs - Vertebrates with cold blood, four legs, scale less skins and are capable of living both in water and land. Respiration is through gills, skins or lungs. Fertilization is external (taking place outside the body mostly in water). They have two stages of life. (1) Larval form in which they live only in water. (2) Adult stage, living in water and land. Eg: Frog, Toad.
(3) Reptiles: Creeping creatures. Cold blooded vertebrates, capable of living in dry places. Respiration is by lungs. The heart is three chambered (except crocodiles) which have four chambered heart. Fertilization is external. No larvae stages. (lay eggs & hatch) Eg: Tortoise, House Lizard, Cobra.
(4) Aves: Birds - Warm blooded animals with feathers covering the body. There are, however, few birds which cannot or hardly fly. (Eg: Ostrich, Kiwi). They are with four chambered heart, with a digestive trat having two additional organs viz. (1) Crop - storing food and (2) Gizzard which grinds the food. Fertilization is inside the body. Eg: Sparrow, Pigeon, Peacock.
(5) Mammalia: Warm blooded vertebrates, feeding their young ones through mammary glands. Four chambered heart with lungs for respiration. There is muscular portion - Diaphragm separating the throatic from the abdominal cavity. The embryo receives nourishment and oxygen through the placenta in the female's womb. Waste is disposed through material blood circulation. Eg. Cat, dog, man.
Q19. What is the largest known vertebrates?
Whales measuring about 30-35 mtrs weighing upto 135 tons (135000 kg).
Q20. What are the zoological terms for the birth, place of living, dietary habits, reproduction practice, structural formation of animals?

(1) Agnatha: Aquatic vertebrates lacking jaws.
(2) Altricial: New born in any form, relatively immobile, having closed eyes and must be cared by adults.
(3) Amoeba: Single celled living organism - visible only through microscope - largest amoeba is only in 1 mm in length.
(4) Anthropods: Highly evolved sub-order of primates. They have grasping hands and feet and nails on fingers and toes. Eg: Monkey, Ape, Man.
(5) Aocoelmoate: Animals without coelom and body cavity.
(6) Apes: Family of primates which includes Gorillas the closest to man.
(7) Arachnids: Anthropods with four pair of legs and the body divided into two parts. Eg. Spider, Scorpion, etc.
(8) Arboreal: Animals live or spread more time on trees. Eg: Monkey, Leopard, etc.
(9) Bovidae: Family of cloven-hoofed animals. Eg: Cattle, Sheep and goats.
(10) Cold Blooded Animals: Animals that cannot regulate their body temperature and thus adapt themselves to the prevailing temperature of the surroundings. Excepting birds and mammals, all other animals are cold blooded.
(11) Coleoptrera: A large order of insects with horny forewings covering part or all of abdomen.
(12) Crepuscular: Animals that are primarily active during twilights.
(13) Carnivores: Animals feeding mainly on meat.
(14) Diurnal: Animals/plants that is active during day time.
(15) Herbivores: Animals that feed mainly on grasses, plants and plant parts Eg: Horse.
(16) Haematophagy: Animals feeding on blood - Eg: Mosquitoes.
(17) Marsupial: Animals which have a porch within their outer body (skin) in which they carry their young ones. Eg: Kangaroo.
(18) Monotremmes: Mammals that lay eggs instead of giving birth to young ones and suckle their youngs.
(19) Nocturnal: Animals which are active during night. Eg: Cat, Rat, etc.
(20) Omnivores: Animals that eat both plants and flesh. Eg: Bear
(21) Oviparous: Animals that lay eggs and hatch them. Eg: Snake, Tortoise, Hen.
(22) Ovoviparous: Animals that develops eggs within themselves and lay them only when they are ready to hatch.
(23) Ophiophagus: Animals that eat their own family of animals. Eg: King Cobra eating other snakes.
(24) Precocial: Refers to animals youngs (new born) which are relatively mature and mobile from the moment of birth or hatching. Eg: Snakes, Horse, Giraffe, Elephant, Cow, etc.
(25) Ruminant: Any animal that digests it's food in two steps, first by eating the raw material and regurgitating a semi digested form of the food called Cud, then chewing the cud. Eg: Cattle, goat, sheep, camel, deer, etc.
(26) Ungulate: Hoofed animals like cattle, camel, goat, sheep, etc.
(27) Viviparous: An animal in which the embryo develops inside the body of the mother, as opposed to outside in an egg (Oviparous) and then mother gives live birth.
(28) Granivore: Kind of animals that live on seeds.
(29) Detrivore: Animals feeding on fragments of plant materials.
(30) Graminivore: Animals that feed only on grass.
(31) Piscivore: Animals that feed only on fishes.
(32) Ectothermes: Scientific term for cold-blooded animals.
Q21. What are the general zoological terminologies?

(1) Adipose: Animal cellular fat.
(2) Adipose Tissue: A type of connective tissue in the body that contains stored cellular fat.
(3) Agnatha: Aquatic vertebrates lacking jaw.
(4) Amphipoda: Group of Crustacea, including sandhoppers and fresh water shrimps.
(5) Antennae: Paired sensory organs which stick out from the heads of insects/animals.
(6) Anura: Group of amphibians - frogs, toads, etc.
(7) Areolar Tissue: A type of connective tissue in which cells distributed in the matrix, they contain white and yellow fibres.
(8) Bone: A connective tissue of special matrix which consists of elastin, impregnated by calcium phosphate, calcium carbonate, Magnesium phosphate and calcium fluoride. They provide skeletal support to the body and protect delicate organs.
(9) Brachiopods: A group of large, mostly extinct marine invertebrate with twin shells.
(10) Bungarus: A specie of the snake family commonly called Kraits.
(11) Bungarotxin: Venom of the Bungaros/Kraits.
(12) Caterpillar: Insect larva with a slender body. Six legs in the front end and a number of soft prolegs. Eg: Caterpillar of Butterfly and moth.
(13) Cell Sap: Fluid present in the cell.
(14) Chitin: A non-protein substance which forms an outer exoskeleton of arthropods.
(15) Contriction: A method used by few snakes like Python, to kill their preys by encircling over them and apply pressure to make them die of Asphyxation.
(16) Colubrid: A broad classification of snakes that includes well over half of all snakes species on earth. Their body is fully covered with scales.
(17) Chordata: A phylum of animals having anotochord, tubular nerve chord, pharangeal gills, and a tail at some stage of their life history.
(18) Coelom: The body cavity of coelomate animals is lined on all sides by mesoderm, in which gut is suspended.
(19) Commensal : An organism living in association with other animals, without causing any harm.
(20) Chondrichthyes: Cartilaginous fish, the endoskeleton of which is exclusively made of cartilage.
(21) Crustaceans: A large and varied class of arthropods which includes crabs, lobsters, prawns etc. They have hard external skeleton and are mostly aquatic.
(22) Diapause: Period of suspended development occurring in certain organisms, often at certain seasons.
(23) Diploblastic: Animals, the body of which has two layers - ectoderm and endoderm.
(24) Diploid: Having two sets of chromosomes in cell nucleus.
(25) Dorsal/Dorsum: The back or upper side of animals that runs in horizontally up to the end of animal.
(26) Dormancy: A period in an organism's life cycle when development is temporary.
(27) Ectoderm: The outer germ layer of the metazoans which develop into the epiderm and it's derivatives.
(28) Endoderm: The innermost germ layer of the metazoans or layer of tissue in embryo.
(29) Ectothermic: Animals whose body heat is regulated by the external environment.
(30) Embryo: From the time of first division until birth, hatching and germination. In human, it is called an embryo from the movement of fertilization until the end of 8th week of gestation age. Thereafter it is called a Foetus. The study is called embryology.
(31) Estivation: A rare state of dormancy (similar to hibernation) during the months of summer.
(32) Foetus: Pregnancy from the 9th week of fertilization in human.
(33) Forked Tongue: A tongue split into two distinct ends at the tip, normally found with reptiles specially snakes which is used for smell.
(34) Flame Cells: Excretory cells of helminthes which have a tuft of flickering flagella inside the hollow cavity of the cell.
(35) Ganglion: A mass of nerve cell bodies.
(36) Gill: An organ of respiration found in fishes, and other aquatic organisms.
(37) Green Glands: Excretory organs of crustaceons.
(38) Gaemotoxin: Toxins that destroys RBCs, disrupt blood clotting, and cause excessive blooeding.
(39) Hibernation: Is a state of inactivity and metabolic depression in animals characterized by lower body temperature, slower breathing and lower metabolic rate. This helps the animals to conserve energy specially during winter.
(40) Invertebrates: Animals without a spinal column.
(41) Larva: The beginning stage in the life circle of animals which are capable of an independent life.
(42) Mammal: Warm blooded vertebrate animals with mamallary glands to feed young ones. They have ear bones, hair, nails, brain etc.
(43) Mesoderm: The middle layer of the three primary germ layers of metazoans.
(44) Notochord: A solid cylindrical rod like structure made of vacuolated cells, present in the mid-dorsal body axis of chordates and is present during some stage of their life history.
(45) Nerve Cord: Hollow tubular cord composed of neurons and usually with ganglia, forms an important part of the nervous system.
(46) Neuro Toxin: A toxin (venom) that acts specifically on nerve cells and the nerve systems.
(47) Oviposition: A sack of fat present in placental vertebrates such as mammals and sharks during gestation (pregnancy).
(48) Phylogeography: Study of the process controlling the geographic distributions of lineages by constructing the genealogies of populations and genes.
(49) Pseudopodi: Temporary outgrowths of protoplasm from the body of the cell. Locomotory organs of an amoeba.
(50) Primate: Any member of the biological order "Primates", the group that contains all the species commonly related to the Lemurs, Monkeys and Apes.
(51) Scales: A protective plates attached to the body of animals like fish and some reptiles which serves as protection.
(52) Species: Basic unit of biological classification. A group of organisms capable of inter-breeding and producing fertile off spring.
(53) Squamata: Scaled reptiles - largest order of reptiles including lizards and snakes. They are distinguished by their skins which bear horny scales or shields. (54) Toxicofera: Is a lade which represents about 4600 species of squamates encompassing all venomous reptiles, and related non venomous species.
(55) Tetrapod: Are vertebrate animals having four feet, legs or leg like appendates. It includes Amphibians, reptiles, dinosaurs and mammals.
(56) Triplo Blastic: Collective term used for internal organs situated in the body cavity.
(57) Vertebrates: Are animals with backbones and spinal columns. There are about 57,000 plus identified reptiles, birds are vertebrates.
(58) Viperids: The venomous snakes of vipers.
(59) Arthopods: Animals which have jointed bodies like spiders, insects, etc.
(60) Pure Breed: An animal that has meticulously documented parentage.
(61) Pedigree: An animal whose ancestry is recorded.