Taxonomy classifies organisms according to specific rules. This results in a hierarchy of organisms based on their characteristics. First organisms are divided into three domains:
- Eukaryota
- Bacteria
- Archaea
Organisms are then further divided into increasingly more specific categories including: kingdom, phylum, class, order, family, genus, and species.
The taxonomic classification of organisms changes as new species are discovered. Advances in the molecular analysis of different organisms can also result in changes in taxonomy.
Phylogeny describes the evolutionary relationships between species or groups of species. The relationships between species or groups of species are often determined based on common genetic and morphological traits. Phylogenetic relationships can be illustrated using a phylogenetic tree. Branch points in a phylogenetic tree represent the divergence of new species from a common ancestor. Phylogenetic trees can be further divided into clades. A clade includes species or groups of species and their most recent common ancestor.
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