Biology IGCSE 0610
Chapter 4: Characteristics of living organisms
MRSGREN
• Movement
• Respiration
• Sensitivity
• Growth
• Reproduction
• Excretion
• Nutrition
Movement
• Action by an organism or part of organism causing change of position
or place.
Respiration
Chemical reactions in cells that breakdown nutrient
molecules and release energy/ATP for metabolism.
Sensitivity
Ability to detect and respond to changes in internal or
external environment.
Growth
Permanent increase in size and dry mass due to increase
in number of cells, or size of cells or both.
Reproduction
• Process of making more of the same kind of organism
Excretion
Removal of waste products of metabolism and substances in excess of
requirements
Nutrition
Taking in of materials (food) for energy, growth and development
Classification
• Kingdom
• Phylum
• Class
• Order
• Family
• Genus
• Species
Species, Genus, and binomial naming system
• Species: Group of organisms similar to each others but if they breed
they produce infertile offspring.
• Genus: Group of living organisms sharing same characteristics and
when breed they produce fertile offspring.
• Binomial naming system: Each living organism has Latin name First
name is the genus name Homo Second name is species name sapiens
Kingdoms (5)
Kingdom Animals
Kingdom Plants
Kingdom Fungi
Kingdom Prokaryote
Kingdom Protoctista
Kingdom animals
Vertebrates Invertebrates
• have backbone • no backbones
Vertebrates
Mammals
1.Body covered by hair/fur
2.Give birth, young develop in
uterus attached to mother by
placenta
3.Females,mammary gland which
produce milk to feed their young,
lactation
4.Ear pinna/ear flap
5.Sweat gland/sweating
6.Diaphragm
7.Warm blooded
Reptile
1.Dry Scaly skin
2.Lay eggs with soft shells
3.Cold blooded
Fish
1.Scaly skin
2.Have gills
3.Have fins
4.Lay eggs with no shells
5.Cold blooded
Amphibians
1.Skin with no scales
2.Lay eggs with no shells
3.Tadpoles live in water, but adults live
on land
4.Tadpoles have gills for gas exchange,
adult have lungs
5.Cold blooded
Birds
1.Body covered with feather
2.Have beak
3.Front limbs are wings
4.Lay eggs with hard shells
5.Warm blooded
Invertebrates
Insects
1.3 Pairs of jointed legs
2.Two pair of wings (1 or non)
3.Tracheae
4.body divided into 3 body
Segments: .head , thorax, abdomen
5.1 Pair of antennae
6.1 pair of compound eyes
Arachnids
1.4 Pairs of jointed legs
2.No pairs of antennae
3.Simple eyes
4.2 body segments
cephalothorax and abdomen
Crustaceans
1.More than 4 pairs of jointed legs
2.1 Pair of compound eyes
3.2 pairs of antennae
Myriapods
1.Many similar segments
2.Each segment has jointed leg
Kingdom plant
Flowering plant Non-Flowering plant
1.Have stem ,root and leaves 1.Ferns
2.Reproduce using flower and 2.Have root, stem, leaves
seeds (fronds)
3.Seed produced inside ovary 3.They reproduce by
spores produced on the
underside of their fronds
Flowering plant
Monocotyledon Dicotyledon
Monocotyledon
1.Seed with 1 cotyledon
2.Roots grow out directly from
stem
3.Leave have parallel veins
4.Flower parts multiple of 3
5.Vascular bundle in stem
arranged randomly
Dicotyledon
1.Seed with 2 cotyledons
2.Tapering main root with
side branching roots
3.Leaves with network of
veins
4.Flower parts 4-5
5.Vascular bundle in stem
arranged in ring
Kingdom Fungi
Unicellular Multicellular
• Eg.yeast • Eg.mushroom
Kingdom Prokaryote
1.Unicellular
2.No nucleus
3.No mitochondria
4.Cell wall made of murien
5.Circular loop of DNA
6.Plasmid
Kingdom Protoctista
1.They are unicellular or
multicellular
2.Cells have nucleus
3.May have or may not have
cell wall and chloroplast
4.Feed by photosynthesis and
other feed on organic
substances made by other
organisms
Virus
Virus could not be added
to one of the 5 kingdoms
as they don’t show
typical features of living
organisms. They are
parasites that feed and
reproduce on host cell
causing harm to host.
