We can look at the organization of living things as a pyramid with seven major levels.

Here’s a silly way to remember the organization categories:

Kangaroos Play Cellos, Orangutans Fiddle, Gorillas Sing

As you learn about different animals, you can use these categories to figure out their classification.  Let’s look at the Ring-tailed Lemur!

Do you remember the first category?

Kingdom!

The Ring-Tailed Lemur belongs to the ANIMAL Kingdom.

(He isn’t like a plant – he cannot create energy from light and minerals.)

The next category is PHYLUM.

The Ring-Tailed Lemur belongs to the CHORDATE Phylum.

(He has a backbone.)

CLASS is the next category.

The Ring-Tailed Lemur belongs to the MAMMAL Class.
(Lemurs feed their babies milk and have fur.)

The next category is ORDER.

The Ring-Tailed Lemur belongs to the PRIMATE Order.

(Characteristics of the Primate Order include a thumb separated from other digits and brain structured for higher reliance on sight and eye-hand coordination.)

FAMILY is the next category.

The Ring-Tailed Lemur belongs to the LEMURIDAE Family.

(The Lemuridae Family are those with a smaller brain, a tail, a slightly longer nose, and special dental features.)

The next category is GENUS.

The Ring-Tailed Lemur belongs to the LEMUR Genus.

(The members of the Lemur Genus share characteristics like vocalizations, body shape, and social structures.)

And finally, the SPECIES category.  RING-TAILED LEMUR

(This is the grouping of those with the same general genetic information.)