Video Transcript
The binomial naming system provides
each organism with two names. For example, the binomial name for
humans is Homo sapiens. In the binomial system, what
taxonomic rank does the first name represent? In the binomial system, what
taxonomic rank does the second name represent?
Binomial is a word that actually
means two names, and it’s the way that scientists name organisms. The first part of the name is more
general, and the last part is more specific. It’s sort of how most people are
given a family name, which tells us who they’re related to, and a given name, which
sets them apart as an individual. However, in the instance of
organisms, as with many cultures, the family name comes first and the more specific
given name comes second.
Well, if you know which taxonomic
rank is the very most specific and which one is the next most general, this would be
enough information to answer our question with. But just in case you’d like another
hint, we’ll go ahead and look at the taxonomic hierarchy for the human species. Humans belong to the animal
kingdom. Our phylum is chordate, and our
class is mammal. We are members of the primate order
and the hominid family. Our genus is Homo, and our species
is sapiens, or Homo sapiens. Now we have everything we need to
answer our questions.
The first name in the binomial
naming system, Homo, represents the genus. And the second name, sapiens,
represents the species. If you remember that in binomial
nomenclature, the general name comes first, that’ll help you to remember that the
first name is actually the genus. And if you remember that the
specific names come second, that’ll help you to remember that the second name is the
species.
