The Five Kingdoms of Life

All living things can be classified into one of these five fundamental Kingdoms of life. Each kingdom is further subdivided into progressively smaller groups. The seven layers of subgrouping are Kingdom, Phylum, Class, Order, Family, Genus, Species. If you like mnemonics, “Kindly penguins commonly order fresh green sausage” is one way to remember this list.

Kingdom Monera:

This kingdom includes the prokaryotes: single-celled organisms that do NOT possess a nucleus. Examples include bacteria, actinomycetes, and the blue-green algae.

Kingdom Protoctista:

This kingdom includes the simplest eukaryotes: single-celled organisms that DO possess a nucleus. Examples include nucleated algae and slime moulds.

Kingdom Fungi:

These nonmotile eukaryotes lack flagella and develop from spores. Examples include yeast, moulds, and mushrooms.

Kingdom Plantae:

These eukaryotes develop from embryos and also use chlorophyll. Examples include mosses and vascular plants.

Kingdom Animalia:

These eukaryotes are multi-cellular organisms that develop from a blastula (a hollow ball of cells). Examples include worms, arthropods, and animals.