Tag Archives: Linnean taxonomy

by Piter Keo | August 27, 2018 · 6:52 pm

The history of Systematics: Systema Naturae from 1758 to 1767-1770

by Piter Kehoma Boll

In a series of previous posts, I detailed the classification of living beings by Linnaeus in his work Systema Naturae as presented in its 10th edition, published in 1758. Here, I will present it in a summarized way and show changes that happened from the 10th edition to the 13th edition published in two parts, one 9 years later in 1767, dealing with animals, and one 12 years later, in 1770, dealing with plants.

Animals

Linnaeus classified animals in 6 classes: Mammalia, Aves, Amphibia, Pisces, Insecta and Vermes.

1. Mammalia included mammals and in 1758 they were classified in 8 orders: Primates, Bruta, Ferae, Bestiae, Glires, Pecora, Belluae, Cete (see details here).

Linnaeus_Mammalia — Linnaeus’ classification of Mammals in 1758 and 1767

In 1767 the order Bestiae no longer exists. Armadillos (Dasypus) were transfered to Bruta, pigs (Sus) to Belluae and the remaining genera to Ferae. Additionally, rhinoceroses (Rhinoceros) were transfered from Glires to Belluae and one bat species was transferred from the genus Vespertilio in Primates to a new genus, Noctilio, in Glires.

2. Aves included birds and in 1758 they were classified in 6 orders: Accipitrae, Picae, Anseres, Grallae, Gallinae, Passeres (see details here).

Linnaeus_Aves — Linnaeus’ classification of birds in 1758 and 1767

In 1767, five new genera are seen in Picae: Buphaga, the oxpeckers, Trogon, the trogons, and Oriolus, the orioles (previously in the genus Coracias), Bucco, the puffbirds and Todus, the todies. One new genus appears in Anseres, Plotus, the darters. The order Grallae receives the new genera Palamedea, the seriemas and screamers, Parra, the jacanas, and Cancroma, the boat-billed heron. The order Gallinae is increased with the new genera Didus, the dodo (which was previously a member of the genus Struthio in the order Grallae), and Numida, the guineafowl (previously in the genus Phasianus). And, finally, the order Passeres received the new genera Pipra for the manakins (previously in Parus), Ampelis, the waxwings and cotings (previously in the genus Lanius in the order Accipitrae), Tanagra, the tanagers (previously in Fringilla) and Muscicapa, the flycatchers (previously in the genera Corvus and Motacilla).

It is also interesting to notice a change in the name of the order Accipitrae to Accipitres, and the genus Jynx is here written Yunx.

3. Amphibia included reptiles, amphibians and some fish and had 3 orders: Reptiles, Serpentes and Nantes (see details here).

Linnaeus_Amphibia — Linnaeus’ classification of Amphibians in 1758 and 1767

The orders Reptiles and Serpentes remained the same. The order Nantes, which in 1758 included mainly cartilaginous fishes, in 1767 included a lot of genera that were previously classified in the class Pisces, especially in the order Branchiostegi (see below).

4. Pisces included most fish and had 5 orders: Apodes, Jugulares, Thoracici, Abdominales and Branchiostegi (see details here).

Linnaeus_Pisces — Linnaeus’ classification of fishes in 1758 and 1767

The genus Ophidion was transfered from the order Jugulares to Apodes and appears spelled Ophidium. The order Thoracici received the additional genus Cepola (red bandfishes) and the order Abdominales was increased with the genera Amia (the bowfin), Teuthis and Elops (the ladyfish), as well as the genus Mormyrus, previosly in the order Branchiostegi, which ceased to exist.

5. Insecta included arthropods and had 7 orders: Coleoptera, Hemiptera, Lepidoptera, Neuroptera, Hymenoptera, Diptera, Aptera (see details here).

Linnaeus_Insecta — Linnaeus’ classification of Insects in 1758 and 1767

The order Coleoptera received the new genera Lucanus (stag beetles, previously in Scarabaeus), Byrrhus (pill beetles), Gyrinus (whirligig beetles), Bruchus (pea weevils), Ptinus (spider beetles), Hispa, Lampyris (glowworms). The genera Blatta and Gryllus were transfered to Hemiptera and mantises were removed from Gryllus and received their own genus, Mantis. Additionally, the lantern flies were removed from the genus Cicada and transferred to Fulgora. In the order Neuroptera, antlions were removed from the genus Hemerobius and transferred to a new genus Myrmeleon. In the order Hymenoptera, the cuckoo wasps were transferred from the genus Sphex to a new genus Chrysis.

6. Vermes included several worms, molluscs, echinoderms, cnidarians and hagfishes. There were 5 orders: Intestina, Mollusca, Testacea, Lithophyta and Zoophyta (see details here).

Linnaeus_Vermes — Linnaeus’ classification of worms in 1758 and 1767

From 1758 to 1767, the genus Furia, of a fictional species, was transferred from Intestina to Zoophyta, and the genus Teredo (shipworms) was transferred from Intestina to Testacea. A new genus, Sipunculus, was added to Intestina to include the peanut worms. In the order Mollusca, we find now the new genera Ascidia (sea squirts), Aplysia (sea hares), Terebella (some polychaetes, previously in Nereis) and Clio (some sea slugs). The genus Priapus, containing sea anemones, is now called Actinia. The order Testacea received the new genera Mactra (trough shells, previously in Cardium) and Sabella (fanworm, previously in Serpula). The order Lithophyta received the new genus Cellepora (for bryozoans). In the order Zoophyta we find the new genera Flustra (for bryozoans previously in Eschara), Vorticella (for ciliates previously in Hydra) and Chaos (for amoebas, previously in Volvox). An additional genus is seen in Zoophyta: Spongia (sponges), transferred from Algae, back in the plant kingdom

Plants

Plants had a much more complicated system than animals. There were the plants with regular flowers classified in classes and orders according to the number of male and female sexual organs, respectively (as you can read in detail in parts 1, 2, 3 and 4 of plants in Systema Naturae). Little has changed that except for some genera, as you can see in the table below.

Linnaeus_regular — Linnaeus classification of plants with regular hermaphrodite flowers in 1758 and 1770. See the image in higher resolution here.

The same is true for species in the classes Didynamia and Tetradynamia, which have flowers with stamens of different sizes. Little has changed in their classification.

Linnaeus_Dynamia — Linnaeus’ classification of plants with flowers having stamens of two different sizes in 1758 and 1770.

Regarding the three classes characterized by flowers with clustered stamens, we can see two new orders in the class Monadelphia.

Linnaeus_Adelphia — Linnaeus’ classification of plants having flowers with clustered stamens in 1758 and 1770.

In the class Syngenesia we can notice that the order Polygamia Superflua ceases to exist, with most of its species being transferred to Polygamia Aequalis, and a new order, Polygamia Segregata, is now present. In the class Gynandria a new order, Dodecandria, is created. See those two classes in more detail here.

Linnaeus_SynGyn — Linnaeus’ classification of plants with stamens fused to each other or to the carpels in 1758 and 1770.

In the three classes of plants with male and female organs occurring in separate flowers, I think the most interesting novelty is that the genus Chara, which in 1758 was classified as a genus of algae, is now among the flowering plants in the class Monoecia, order Monandria.

Linnaeus_Oecia — Linnaeus’ classification of plants having male and female organs in different flowers in 1758 and 1770.

Finally, among the Cryptogams, the “plants without flowers”, little has changed except for the transfer of Chara to the flowering plants and Spongia to the animal kingdom.

Linnaeus_Cryptogamia — Linnaeus classification of Cryptogams in 1758 and 1770

While Linnaeus continued to develop his own system, other classifications were being proposed. We’ll start to take a look at them in the next chapters.

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References:

Linnaeus, C. (1758) Systema Naturae per regna tria Naturae…

Linnaeus, C; (1967) Systema Naturae per regna tria Naturae….

Linnaeus, C. (1770) Systema Naturae per regna tria Naturae…

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Filed under Botany, Systematics, taxonomy, Zoology

Tagged as animals, Linnaeus, Linné, Linnean taxonomy, plants, Systema Naturae

by Piter Keo | August 25, 2018 · 8:00 am

The history of Systematics: Plants in Systema Naturae, 1758 (Part 9)

by Piter Kehoma Boll

The last part of the series is finally here! See also parts 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 and 8. The only class that remains to be introduced is Cryptogamia, the plants without flowers.

24. Cryptogamia (“hidden marriages”)

“Marriage is celebrated privately”, i.e., sexual organs are not clearly visible.

24.1 Filices (ferns): Equisetum (horsetails), Onoclea (sensitive fern), Ophioglossum (adder’s-tongue ferns), Osmunda (royal ferns), Acrostichum (leather ferns), Polypodium (polypodies), Hemionitis (hemionitises), Asplenium (spleenworts), Blechnum (hard ferns), Lonchitis (lonchitises), Pteris (brakes), Adiantum (walking ferns), Trichomanes (britstle ferns and lace ferns), Marsilea (water clovers), Pilularia (pillworts), Isoetes (quillworts).

Linnaeus’ order Filices included (from left to right, top to bottom) the common horsetail (Equisetum arvense), the sensitive fern (Onoclea sensibilis), the common adder’s tongue (Ophioglossum vulgatum), common royal fern (Osmunda regalis), golden leather-fern (Acrostichum aureum), Chinese brake (Pteris vittata), western hard fern (Blechnum occidentale), black spleenwort (Asplenium adiantum-nigrum), common polypody (Polypodium vulgare), Venus-hair fern (Adiantum capillus-veneris), lace fern (Trichomanes chinensis, now Sphenomeris chinensis), European water clover (Marsilea quadrifolia), common pillwort (Pilularia globulifera), and lake quillwort (Isoetes lacustris). Credits to Rob Hille (horsetail), Kurt Stueber (royal fern), Krzysztof Ziarnek (hard fern), Forest & Kim Starr (spleenwort, lace fern), H. Zell (polypody), Tato Grasso (Venus-hair fern), Daria Inozemtseva (quillwort), Wikimedia users JMK (brake), Keisotyo (water clover) and Kembangraps (pillwort), flickr user peganum (sensitive fern).

24.2 Musci (mosses): Lycopodium (club mosses), Porella (scaleworts), Sphagnum (sphagnums), Phascum (phascum mosses), Fontinalis (fountain mosses), Buxbaumia (bug mosses), Splachnum (dung mosses), Polytrichum (haircap mosses), Mnium (calcareous mosses), Bryum (common mosses), Hypnum (flat mosses).

Among the species in the order Musci there were (from left to right, top to bottom) the common club moss (Lycopodium clavatum), pinnate scalewort (Porella pinnata), prairie sphagnum (Sphagnum palustre), common fountain moss (Fontinalis antipyretica), common bug moss (Buxbaumia aphylla), Alpine haircap (Polytrichum alpinum), horn calcareous moss (Mnium hornum), silver moss (Bryum argenteum), cypress moss (Hypnum cupressiforme). Credits to Christian Fischer (club moss), Rafael Medina (scalewort), Bern Haynold (sphagnum), Hermann Schachner (haircap, silver moss), Bernard Dupont (calcareous moss), and Wikimedia users AnRo0002 (fountain moss) and Aconcagua (cypress moss).

24.3 Algae (algae): Jungermannia (leafy liverworts), Targionia (targionias), Marchantia (thallose liverwort), Blasia (blasia), Riccia (crystalworts), Anthoceros (hornworts), Lichen (lichens), Chara (stoneworts), Tremella (several jelly-like organisms), Fucus (brown and red algae), Ulva (sea lettuces and lavers), Conferva (several filamentous algae), Byssus (several crusty and wooly organisms), Spongia (sponges).

The diverse order Algae included (from left to right, top to bottom) the forest leafy liverwort (Jungermannia nemorea, now Scapania nemorea), common targionia (Targionia hypophylla), green tongue liverwort (Marchantia polymorpha), blasia (Blasia pusilla), floating crystalwort (Riccia fluitans), smooth horwort (Anthoceros laevis, now Phaeoceros laevis), map lichen (Lichen geographicus, now Rhizocarpon geographicum), common stonewort (Chara vulgaris), witch’s jelly (Tremella nostoc, now Nostoc commune), serrated wrack (Fucus serratus), common sea lettuce (Ulva lactuca), rock weed (Conferva rupestris, now Cladophora rupestris), golden wool (Byssus aurea, now Trentepohlia aurea), bath sponge (Spongia officinalis). Credits to Bernd Haynold (leafy liverwort, blasia), Luis Fernández García (targionia), Denis Barthel (green tongue), Christian Fischer (crystalwort), Fritz Geller-Grimm (lichen), Lairich Rig (witch’s jelly), Kristian Peters (sea lettuce), Bioimages (rock wed), JK Johnson (golden wool), Guido Picchetti (sponge) and Wikimedia users Oliver s. (hornwort), Mnolf (stonewort) and Citron (wrack).

24.4 Fungi (fungi): Agaricus (gilled mushrooms), Boletus (pore-bearing mushrooms), Hydnum (toothed mushrooms), Phallus (phallic mushrooms), Clathrus (finger-shaped fungi), Elvela (saddle-like mushrooms), Peziza (cup-shaped mushrooms), Clavaria (club-shaped mushrooms), Lycoperdon (ball-shaped mushrooms), Mucor (molds).

The order Fungi contained (from left to right, top to bottom) the field mushroom (Agaricus campestris), common red shelf-mushroom (Boletus sanguineus, now Pycnoporus sanguineus), sweet tooth (Hydnum repandum), common stinkhorn (Phallus impudicus), carnival candy slime-mold (Clathrus denudatus, now Arcyria denudata), vinegar cup (Peziza acetabulum, now Helvella acetabulum), sweet club-mushroom (Clavaria pistillaris, now Clavariadelphus pistillaris), grassland puffball (Lycoperdon cervinum, now Lycoperdon lividum), common pin-mold (Mucor mucedo). Credits to Nathan Wilson (field mushroom), Instituto Últimos Refúgios (shelf mushroom), H. Krisp (sweet tooth, vinegar cup), Jörg Hempel (stinkhorn), Bea Leiderman (slime mold), Francisco J. Díez Martín (club mushroom), Michel Beeckman (puffball) and James Lindsey (pin mold).

Here we can see that Linnaeus’ mess reached its limit. There are even animals classified as plants, as you can see sponges appearing as algae. Actually, the order Algae included species belonging to almost every currently recognized kingdom, from bacteria to animals, fungi, plants and heterokonts. The other orders are considerably more uniform.

We finished Linnaeus’ System! Yay!

I will make an additional post with a summary and then we can move on to changes that happened in following systems. See you there!

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Reference:

Linnaeus, C. (1758) Systema Naturae per regna tria Naturae…

– – –

All images are licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

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Filed under Botany, Systematics, taxonomy

Tagged as Linnaeus, Linné, Linnean taxonomy, sexual classification, Species Plantarum, Systema Naturae

by Piter Keo | July 30, 2018 · 2:02 pm

The history of Systematics: Plants in Systema Naturae, 1758 (Part 8)

by Piter Kehoma Boll

This is the last part of Linnaeus’ classification of plants dealing with flowering plants (see parts 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 and 7) and presents three classes composed by plants that contain more than one type of flower. The last part of the system (part 9) will deal with non-flowering plants.

21. Monoecia (“single house”)

“Husbands inhabit with women in the same house, but in different bedroom”, i.e., male and female organs occur in the same plant, but in different flowers.

21.1 Monoecia Monandria (“single house, single male”), male flowers having a single stamen: Zannichellia (horned pondweeds), Ceratocarpus (hornfruits), Hippomane (manchineels), Cynomorium (desert thumb).

21.2 Monoecia Diandria (“single house, two males”), male flowers having two stamens: Lemna (duckweeds).

The horned pondweed (Zannichellia palustris, left), the manchineel tree (Hippomane mancinella, center-left) and the desert thumb (Cynomorium coccineum, center-right) were classified in the order Monoecia Monandria, while the common duckweed (Lemna minor, right) was classified in the order Monoecia Diandria. Credits to Yu Ito (horned pondweed), Hans Hillewaert (manchineel, desert thumb) and Wikimedia user 3268zauber (duckweed).

21.3 Monoecia Triandria (“single house, three males”), male flowers having three stamens: Typha (cattails or bulrushes), Sparganium (bur-reeds), Zea (maize), Tripsacum (gamagrasses), Coix (Job’s tear), Olyra (carrycillo), Carex (true sedges), Axyris (pigweeds), Omphalea (cobnuts), Tragia (noseburns), Hernandia (hernandias), Phyllanthus (chamber bitters, Indian gooseberries and alike).

The order Monoecia Triandria included (from left to right, top to bottom) the common cattail (Typha latifolia), branched bur-reed (Sparganium erectum), maize (Zea mays), eastern gamagrass (Tripsacum dactyloides), Job’s tear (Coix lacryma-jobi), carrycillo (Olyra latifolia), carnation-sedge (Carex panicea), Jamaican cobnut (Omphalea triandra), Indian noseburn (Tragia involucrata) and chamber bitter (Phyllanthus urinaria). Credits to H. Zell (maize), Mason Brock (gamagrass), Alex Popovkin (carrycillo), Kristian Peters (sedge), and Wikimedia users AnRo0002 (cattail), Hugo.arg (bur-reed), Vinayaraj (Job’s tear, Indian noseburn), Carstor (cobnut) and Atsuko-y (chamber bitter).

21.4 Monoecia Tetrandria (“single house, four males”), male flowers with four stamens: Betula (birches and alders), Buxus (box), Urtica (nettles), Morus (mulberry trees).

The dwarf birch (Betula nana, left), the common box (Buxus sempervirens, center-left), the common nettle (Urtica dioica, center-right) and the black mulberry tree (Morus nigra, right) were classified in the order Monoecia Tetrandria. Credits to Uwe H. Friese (nettle), Fritz Geller-Grimm (mulberry tree) and Wikimedia users El Grafo (birch) and Abrimaal (box).

21.5 Monoecia Pentandria (“single house, five males”), male flowers with five stamens: Xanthium (cockleburs), Ambrosia (ragweeds), Parthenium (feverfews), Iva (marsh elders), Amarantus (pigweeds).

The common cocklebur (Xanthium strumarium, left), the common ragweed (Ambrosia artemisiifolia, center-left), the American feverfew (Parthenium integrifolium, center), the annual marsh elder (Iva annua, center-right) and the spiny pigweed (Amaranthus spinosus, right) were part of the order Monoecia Pentandria. Credits to Javier Martin (cocklebur), Meneerke Bloem (ragweed), Krzysztof Ziarnek (feverfew), and Forest & Kim Starr (pigweed).

21.6 Monoecia Hexandria (“single house, six males”), male flowers with six stamens: Zizania (wild rice), Pharus (stalkgrass), Solandra (a species of doubtful identifcation).

21.7 Monoecia Heptandria (“single house, seven males”), male flowers with seven stamens: Guettarda (beach gardenia).

1758Linnaeus_monoecia_hexandria-heptandria

The wild rice (Zizania aquatica, left) and the broadleaf stalkgrass (Pharus latifolius, center) were placed in the order Monoecia Hexandria, while the beach gardenia (Guettarda speciosa) was in the order Monoecia Heptandria. Credits to Michael Wolf (wild rice), Alex Popovkin (stalkgrass) and Cas Liber (beach gardenia).

21.8 Monoecia Polyandria (“single house, many males”), male flowers with many stamens: Ceratophyllum (hornworts), Myriophyllum (watermilfoils), Sagittaria (arrowheads), Theligonum (dog’s cabbage), Poterium (burnets), Quercus (oaks), Juglans (walnut trees), Fagus (beeches and chestnut trees), Carpinus (hornbeams), Corylus (hazels), Platanus (planes), Liquidambar (sweetgums).

Linnaeus included in the order Monoecia Polyandria (from left to right, top to bottom) the common hornwort (Ceratophyllum demersum), whorl-leaf watermilfoil (Myrophyllum verticillatum), common arrowhead (Sagittaria sagittifolia), common oak (Quercus robur), common walnut tree (Juglans regia), common beech (Fagus sylvatica), common hornbeam (Carpinus betulus), common hazel (Corylus avellana), Eastern plane (Platanus orientalis) and American sweetgum (Liquidambar styraciflua). Credits to Christian Fischer (hornwort, arrowhead), Piotr Panek (watermilfoil), Krzysztof Ziarnek (oak), H. Zell (walnut tree), Franz Xaver (hornbeam), André Karwath (hazel), Dimitar Nàydenov (plane), Kurt Stueber (sweetgum) and Wikimedia user Der Michels (beech).

21.9 Monoecia Monadelpha (“single house, single brothers”), male flowers with stamens fused in a single body by their filaments: Pinus (pines, larches, spruces and firs), Thuja (thujas), Cupressus (cypresses), Acalypha (acalyphas), Croton (crotons), Jatropha (physicnuts), Ricinus (castor oil plants), Sterculia (bastard poon tree), Plukenetia (Inca nut tree), Hura (possumwood).

The order Monoecia Monadelpha included (from left to right, top the bottom) the Swiss pine (Pinus cembra), eastern thuja (Thuja occidentalis), Mediterranean cypress (Cupressus sempervirens), Indian acalypha (Acalypha indica), garden croton (Croton variegatus, now Codiaeum variegatum), black physicnut (Jatropha gossypifolia), castor oil plant (Ricinus communis), bastard poon tree (Sterculia foetida), Inca nut (Plukenetia volubilis) and possumwood (Hura crepitans). Credits to Wouter Hagens (thuja), J. M. Garg (acalypha, croton, physicnut), Martina Nolte (castor oil plant), Raju Kasambe (bastard poon tree), Hans Hillewart (possumwood) and Wikimedia users Moroder (pine), Philmarin (cypress) and NusHub (Inca nut).

21.10 Monoecia Syngenesia (“single house, same generation”), male flowers with stamens united forming a cylinder: Trichosanthes (snake gourd), Momordica (bitter melons and luffas), Cucurbita (pumpkins, squashes, calabashes, watermelon), Cucumis (melons, cucumbers), Bryonia (bryonies), Sicyos (bur cucumber).

21.11 Monoecia Gynandria (“single house, female husband”), male flowers with stamens united to the (sterile) pistil: Andrachne (andrachne).

1758Linnaeus_monoecia_syngenesia_gynandria

The order Monoecia Syngenesia included (from left to right) the snake gourd (Trichosanthes cucumerina), bitter melon (Momordica charantia), pumpkin (Cucurbita pepo), cucumber (Cucumis sativus), white bryony (Bryonia alba) and oneseed bur cucumber (Sicyos angulatus), while the order Monoecia Gynandria included the common andrachne (Andrachne telephioides, right). Credits to Florian Wickern (pumpkin), H. Zell (cucumber), Robert H. Mohlenbrock (bur cucumber), Vojtĕch Zavadil (andrachne), flickr user tanakawho (snake gourd) and Wikimedia users Prenn (bitter melon) and Sannse (bryony).

22. Dioecia (“two houses”)

“Husbands and women live in different bedrooms and houses”, i.e., male and female organs occur in different flowers and in different plants.

22.1 Dioecia Monandria (“two houses, single male”), male flowers having a single stamen: Najas (naiads).

22.2 Dioecia Diandria (“two houses, two males”), male flowers having two stamens: Vallisneria (eelgrasses), Cecropia (trumpet tree), Salix (willows).

The order Dioecia Monandria included a single species, the spiny naiad (Najas marina, left). The order Dioecia Diandria included the common eelgrass (Vallisneria spiralis, center-left), trumpet tree (Cecropia pelatata, center-right) and weeping willow (Salix babylonica, right). Credits to Stefan Lefnaer (naiad), Ori Fragman-Sapir (eelgrass), and Wikimedia users Cmales (trumpet tree) and Viaouest (willow).

22.3 Dioecia Triandria (“two houses, three males”), male flowers having three stamens: Empetrum (crowberries), Osyris (osyris), Excoecaria (blind-your-eye mangrove).

The black crowberry (Empetrum nigrum, left), osyris (Osyris alba, center) and blind-your-eye mangrove (Excoecaria agallocha, right) were part of the order Dioecia Triandria. Credits to Krzysztof Ziarnek (crowberry), Hans Hillewaert (osyris) and Wikimedia user Vengolis (blind-your-eye mangrove).

22.4 Dioecia Tetrandria (“two houses, four males”), male flowers having four stamens: Trophis (trophis), Batis (beachwort), Viscum (mistletoes), Hippophae (sea buckthorns), Myrica (bog myrtles and wax myrtles).

The beachwort (Batis maritima, left), common mistletoe (Viscum album, center-left), common sea buckthorn (Hippophae rhamnoides, center-right) and bog myrtle (Myrica gale, right) made up the order Dioecia Tetrandria. Credits to Forest & Kim Starr (beachwort), Karunakar Rayker (sea buckthorn), Sten Porse (bog myrtle) and Wikimedia user AnRo0002 (mistletoe).

22.5 Dioecia Pentandria (“two houses, five males”), male flowers having five stamens: Pistacia (pistachios and lentiscs), Zanthoxylum (prickly ashes), Ceratonia (carob tree), Iresine (Juba’s bush), Antidesma (heen embilla), Spinacia (spinach), Acnida (water hemp), Cannabis (hemp), Humulus (hop), Zanonia (zanonia), Fevillea (javillo).

The order Dioecia Pentandria included (from left to right, top to bottom) the pistachio (Pistacia vera), souther prickly ash (Zanthoxylum clava-herculis), carob tree (Ceratonia siliqua), Juba’s bush (Iresine celosia, now Iresine diffusa), spinach (Spinacia oleracea), hemp (Cannabis sativa), the common hop (Humulus lupulus), zanonia (Zanonia indica) and javillo (Fevillea cordifolia). Credits to Franz Xaver (Juba’s bush), Dinesh Valke (hemp), Fritz Geller-Grimm (hop), P. Acevedo (javillo) and Wikimedia users NAEINSUN (pistachio), Rickjpelleg (carob tree), Rasban (spinach) and Vinayaraj (zanonia).

22.6 Dioecia Hexandria (“two houses, six males”), male flowers having six stamens: Tamus (lady’s seal), Smilax (smilaxes), Rajania (rajanias), Dioscorea (true yams).

Linnaeus included the lady’s seal (Tamus communis, now Dioscorea communis, left), common smilax (Smilax aspera, center) and air yam (Dioscorea bulbifera, right) in the order Dioecia Hexandria. Credits to Alan Fryer (lady’s seal), Carsten Niehaus (smilax) and Dinesh Valke (yam).

22.7 Dioecia Octandria (“two houses, eight males”), male flowers having eight stamens: Populus (aspens and poplars), Rhodiola (golden root).

22.8 Dioecia Enneandria (“two houses, nine males”), male flowers having nine stamens: Mercurialis (mercuries), Hydrocharis (frogbits).

1758Linnaeus_dioecia_octandria-enneandria

The order Dioecia Octandria included the common aspen (Populus tremula, left) and the golden root (Rhodiola rosea, center-left), while the order Dioecia Enneandria included the dog’s mercury (Mercurialis perennis, center-right) and the common frogbit (Hydrocharis morsus-ranae, right). Credits to Wikimedia users AnRo0002 (aspen), Amazonia Exotics U.K (golden root), BerndH (mercury) and Salicyna (frogbit).

22.9 Dioecia Decandria (“two houses, ten males”), male flowers with ten stamens: Carica (papaya tree), Kiggelaria (wild peach), Coriaria (coriarias), Datisca (datiscas).

22.10 Dioecia Polyandria (“two houses, many males”), male flowers with many stamens: Cliffortia (Cliffortias).

1758Linnaeus_dioecia_decandria-polyandria

The order Dioecia Decandria included (from left to right) the papaya tree (Carica papaya), wild peach (Kiggelaria africana), huique (Coriaria ruscifolia) ad Asian datisca (Datisca cannabina), while the prickly cliffortia (Cliffortia ruscifolia, right) was one of the few members of the order Dioecia Polyandria. Credits to Vijayan Rajapuram (papaya tree), Franz Xaver (huique), H. Zell (datisca), and Wikimedia users JMK (wild peach) and Dwergenpaartje (cliffortia).

22.11 Dioecia Monadelphia (“two houses, single brothers”), male flowers with stamens fused in a single body by their filaments: Juniperus (junipers), Taxus (yews), Ephedra (joint pines), Cissampelos (velvetleaf), Adelia (adelias).

Among the members of the order Dioecia Monadelphia there were (from left to right) the Phoenician juniper (Juniperus phoenicea), European yew (Taxus baccata), common joint pine (Ephedra distachya) and velvetleaf (Cissampelos pareira). Credits to Isidre Blanc (juniper), Didier Descouens (yew), Dinesh Valke (velvetleaf) and Wikimedia user Le.Loup.Gris (joint pine).

22.12 Dioecia Syngenesia (“two houses, same generation”), male flowers with stamens fused into a cylinder: Ruscus (butcher’s brooms and poet’s laurel).

22.13 Dioecia Gynandria (“two houses, female husband”), male flowers with stamens united to the (sterile) pistil: Clutia (lightning bushes).

1758Linnaeus_dioecia_syngenesia-gynandria

The common butcher’s broom (Ruscus aculeatus, left) was in the order Dioecia Syngenesia, and the common lightning bush (Clutia pulchella, right) was in the order Dioecia Gynandria. Credits to Fritz Geller-Grimm (butcher’s broom) and Wikimedia user JMK (lightning bush).

23. Polygamia (“many marriages”)

“Husbands with wives as well as unmarried ones live together in different bedrooms”, i.e., there are hermaphroditic flowers, as well as male-only or female-only flowers in the same species.

23.1 Polygamia Monoecia (“many marriages, single house”), hermaphrodite flowers occur in the same plant in which male-only or female-only flowers occur: Musa (banana trees), Ophioxylon (devil pepper), Celtis (hackberries), Veratrum (false hellebores), Andropogon (beard grasses, bluestems, spear grasses, lemon grasses, among others), Holcus (soft grasses, fountaingrasses, sorghums, among others), Apluda (Mauritian grass), Ischaemum (murainagrass), Cenchrus (sandspurs), Aegilops (goatgrasses), Valantia (valantias), Parietaria (pellitories), Atriplex (oraches), Dalechampia (dalechampias), Clusia (copeys), Acer (maples), Begonia (begonias), Mimosa (mimosas, shimbilloes, sennas, blackbeads, among others).

The diverse order Polygamia Monoecia included (from left to right, top to bottom) the banana tree (Musa paradisiaca, currently Musa × paradisiaca, a hybrid), devil pepper (Ophioxylon serpentinum, now Rauvolfia serpentina), Mediterraean hackberry (Celtis australis), white hellebore (Veratrum album, broomsedge bluestem (Andropogon virginicus), creeping soft grass (Holcus mollis), Mauritian grass (Apluda mutica), common murainagrass (Ischaemum aristatum), common sandspur (Cenchrus echinatus), bearded goatgrass (Aegilops triuncialis), wall valantia (Valantia muralis), upright pellitory (Parietaria officinalis), garden orache (Atriplex hortensis), common dalechampia (Dalechampia scandens), lesser copey (Clusia minor), red maple (Acer rubrum), Antillean begonia (Begonia obliqua), and touch-me-not (Mimosa pudica). Credits to Franz Xaver (banana tree), H. Zell (devil pepper), Krish Dulal (hackberry), Hedwig Storch (white hellebore), Harry Rose (bluestem), Krzysztof Ziarnek (soft grass), J. M. Garg Mauritian grass), Javier Martin (goatgrass), Radio Tonreg (pellitory), Stefan Lefnaer (orache), David J. Stang (copey), Yercaud Elango (begonia), flickr user Macleay Grass Man (sandspur) and Wikimedia users Keisotyo (murainagrass), Aroche (valantia), Aniprina (dalechampia), Famartin (maple) and Werner1122 (touch-me-not).

23.2 Polygamia Dioecia (“many marriages, two houses”), hermaphrodite flowers and male-only or female-only flowers occur in different plants: Gleditsia (locusts), Fraxinus (ashes), Diospyros (persimmon trees), Nyssa (tupelo), Anthospermum (anthosperm), Arctopus (bear foot), Pisonia (birdcatcher trees), Panax (ginseng).

In the order Polygamia Dioecia, Linnaeus included (from left to right, top to bottom) the honey locust (Gleditsia triacanthos), common ash (Fraxinus excelsior), American persimmon (Diospyros virginiana), water tupelo (Nyssa aquatica), bear foot (Arctopus echinatus), thorny birdcatcher tree (Pisonia aculeata) and American ginseng (Panax quinquefolius). Credits to Andrew Butko (locust), Donar Reiskoffer (ash), Dinesh Valke (persimmon), Winfried Bruenken (bear foot), Alex Popvkin (birdcatcher tree), Dan J. Pittillo (ginseng) and Flickr user lucianvenutian (tupelo).

23.3 Polygamia Trioecia (“many marriages, three houses”), there are plants with only male flowers, others with only female flowers and others with both male and female flowers: Ficus (fig trees).

The order Polygamia Trioecia included only the genus Ficus, with species such as the common fig tree (Ficus carica, left) and the sacred fig tree (Ficus religiosa, right). Credits to Flickr user INRA DIST (common fig tree) and Wikimedia user Amada44 (sacred fig tree).

By classifying all plants with flowers of different sexualities in three classes, Linnaeus made a complete mess. We usually can see at least a vague pattern toward what was later found to be phylogenetically true in some other groups, but it is hard to find anything still relevant today here.

We only need one more part and we will finally finish Linnaeus’ system!

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Reference:

Linnaeus, C. (1758) Systema Naturae per regna tria Naturae…

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All images are licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

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Filed under Botany, Systematics, taxonomy

Tagged as Linnaeus, Linné, Linnean taxonomy, polyamory, polygamy, profane flowers, promiscuity, sexual classification, Species Plantarum, Systema Naturae

by Piter Keo | May 23, 2018 · 2:43 pm

Whose Wednesday: Carl Linnaeus

by Piter Kehoma Boll

Leia em português

Today we celebrate the birthday of one of the most important figures in the history of biology and certainly the most important one regarding taxonomy, Carl Linnaeus, also known as Carl von Linné or Carolus Linnaeus. There is so much to talk about him, but I will give a very brief summary.

Linnaeus was born in Sweden on 23 May 1707 in a village called Råshult. His father, Nils Ingemarsson, later Nils Linnaeus, was an amateur botanist and a Lutheran minister. Showing an interest in plants since childhood, Linnaeus, during most of his early education, avoided studying other subjects, escaping classes to examine plants in gardens and fields.

In 1724, he entered the Växjö Katedralskola to attend a curriculum designed to those seeking for priesthood, but his progress was not satisfactory. One of his teachers, Johan Rothman, which was also a doctor, suggested that Linnaeus could have a future in medicine and took him to live with his family in Växjö, teaching him physiology and botany. Rothman taught him the basic concepts of botany at the time, including Tournefort’s system to classify plants.

429px-carolus_linnaeus_by_hendrik_hollander_1853 — A young Linnaeus in a Laponian costume. Replica of a work by Hendrik Hollander.

In 1728, Linnaeus started to attend Uppsala University by recomendation of Rothman. There he met Olof Celsius, a professor of theology and amateur botanist, who received Linnaeus at his home, which had one of the richest botanical libraries in Sweden. In 1729, Linnaeus wrote a thesis on plant sexual reproduction, Praeludia Sponsaliorum Plantarum, which called the attention of Olof Rudbeck the Younger, an older professor of Uppsala. In 1730, Rudbeck selected Linnaeus to give lectures in Uppsala, even though he was only a second-year student. One month later, Linnaeus moved to Rudbeck’s house to become a tutor of his three youngest children. At this time, Linnaeus decided to create his own system for the classification of plants, as he was not satisfied by Tournefort’s system.

By the end of 1731, Linnaeus had a disagreement with Rudbeck’s wife and had to move out of their house, but his relationship with Rudbeck was not affected. In 1732 he made an expedition to Lapland, traveling about 2 thousand kilometers by foot and horse during six months and collecting about 100 previously unidentified plants.

After returning to Uppsala, Linnaeus continued to have problems with Nils Rosén, a former assistant of Rudbeck that was interested in occupying Linnaeus’ place in the university. Due to their disagreements, Linnaeus accepted an invitation of a student, Claes Sohlberg, to spend the Christmas holiday with his family in the city of Falun. There, Sohlberg’s father invited Linnaeus to become his son’s tutor in the Dutch Republic (modern Netherlands). Linnaeus accepted and took the opportunity to take a doctoral degree in medicine at the University of Harderwijk.

In the Netherlands, Linnaeus met Johan Frederik Gronovius and showed him his manuscript on the new classification of plants. Gronovius and a Scottish doctor, Isaac Lawson, helped to pay for the printing and the manuscript was published in 1735 as the Systema Naturae. In this work, Linnaeus reduced the description of species to a genus followed by a single word to refer easily to them, which would later become the currently used binomial nomenclature.

Linnaeus also became acquainted with the botanist Herman Boerhaave and, following his advice, visited the botanist Johannes Burman. During his stay at Burman’s place, he met George Clifford III, who was the owner of a rich botanical garden. Amazed by Linnaeus’s classification of plants, Clifford invited him to become his physician and superintendent of his garden. Linnaeus accepted and moved there, staying from 1735 to 1738. From this experience, he wrote his book Hortus Cliffortianus.

carl_linnaeus — Portrait of Carl Linnaeus in 1739. Author unknown.

Linnaeus returned to Sweden in 1738 and, in Falun, engaged Sara Elisabeth Moraea. They married in 1739 and in 1741 their first son, Carl, was born, and two years later a daughter, Elisabeth Christina, both becoming botanists as their father. The couple had several other children.

During the following years, Linnaeus carried out several expeditions through Europe and, in 1750, became rector of Uppsala University. In 1751, he published Philosophia Botanica, a book containing a survey of his botanical system and other important information on how to do botanical work. In 1753, he published another major work, Species Plantarum, which became internationally known as the starting point of the modern botanical nomenclature. The same year, the King dubbed him knight of the Order of the Polar Star.

His work Systema Naturae continued to be published in updated versions and the 10th edition, published in 1758, became the starting point of modern zoological nomenclature.

496px-carl_von_linnc3a9 — An older Linnaeus in 1775. Portrait by Alexander Roslin.

In 1774, already retired, Linnaeus suffered a stroke that partially paralyzed him. He had a second stroke in 1776, which paralyzed his right side and troubled his memory so that he was unable to identify himself as the author of his own works. A third stroke came in December 1777 and he eventually died on 10 January 1778.

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References:

Wikipedia. Carl Linnaeus. Available at < https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carl_Linnaeus >. Access on May 22, 2018.

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Filed under Biographies

Tagged as botanists, Linnean taxonomy, Swedish naturalists

by Piter Keo | May 8, 2016 · 6:34 pm

The history of Systematics: Plants in Systema Naturae, 1758 (Part 2)

by Piter Kehoma Boll

This posts continues to present the classification of plants according to Linnaeus that started in part 1. Se also parts 3, 4, 5, 6 and 7.

5. Pentandria (“five males”)

“Five husbands in each marriage”, i.e., five stamens in a hermaphrodite flower.

5.1 Pentandria monogynia (“five males and one female”), five stamens and one pistil in a hermaphrodite flower: Heliotropium (heliotropes), Myosotis (forget-me-nots), Lithospermum (gromwells), Anchusa (buglosses), Cynoglossum (houndstongues), Pulmonaria (lungworts), Symphytum (comfreys), Cerinthe (honeyworts), Borago (borages), Asperugo (madwort), Lycopsis (monksworts), Echium (viper’s bugloss), Varronia (varronia), Tournefortia (soldier’s bushes), Chiococca (cahincas), Diapensia (pincushions), Aretia (Alpine rock-jasmine), Androsace (rock-jasmines), Primula (primroses), Cortusa (Alpine bells), Soldanella (snowbells), Dodecatheon (shooting stars), Cyclamen (cyclamens), Menyanthes (bogbeans), Hottonia (water violets), Hydrophyllum (waterleaves), Lysimachia (loosestrifes), Anagallis (pimpernels), Theophrasta (theophrastas), Patagonula (patagonulas), Spigelia (pinkroots), Ophiorrhiza (snakeroots), Randia (indigoberries), Azalea (azaleas), Plumbago (leadworts), Phlox (phloxes), Convolvulus (bindweeds), Ipomoea (morning glories), Polemonium (Jacob’s ladders), Campanula (bellflowers), Roella (roellas), Phyteuma (rampions), Trachelium (throatworts), Samolus (brookweeds), Rondeletia (Panama roses), Portlandia (Jamaican bells), Bellonia (bellonias), Cinchona (quinines), Psychotria (wild coffees), Coffea (coffee), Lonicera (honeysuckles), Triosteum (horse-gentians), Erithalis (blacktorches), Morinda (morindas), Conocarpus (button trees), Mussaenda (mussaendas), Genipa (genipapo), Mirabilis (four o’clocks), Coris (bugflowers), Verbascum (mulleins), Datura (trumpets), Hyoscyamus (henbanes), Nicotiana (tobacco plants), Atropa (nightshades and mandrakes), Physalis (groundcherries), Solanum (nightshades, tomatoes, potato, aubergine), Capsicum (bell peppers, chili peppers), Strychnos (strychnine trees), Chironia (chironias), Cordia (manjacks), Brunfelsia (brunfelsias), Ehretia (ehretias), Cestrum (cestrums), Lycium (boxthorns), Chrysophyllum (goldleaves), Sideroxylon (bully trees), Rhamnus (buckthorns), Phylica (cape myrtles), Ceanothus (wild lilacs), Myrsine (African boxwood), Celastrus (staff vines), Euonymus (spindles), Hartogia (Cape buchu), Byttneria (byttnerias), Diosma (diosmas), Brunia (brunias), Itea (sweetspires), Galax (wandplant), Cedrela (new world cedars), Mangifera (magoes), Cupania (cupanias), Ribes (gooseberries and currants), Gronovia (gronovia), Hedera (ivies), Vitis (grape vines), Lagoecia (lagoecias), Sauvagesia (sauvagesias), Claytonia (miner’s lettuces), Achyranthes (chaff-flowers), Celosia (cockscombs), Illecebrum (coral necklace), Glaux (sea milkweed), Thesium (thesiums), Rauvolfia (devil-pepper), Cerbera (mango mangroves), Vinca (periwinkles), Nerium (oleanders), Plumeria (plumerias), Cameraria (camerarias), Tabernaemontana (milkwoods), Ceropegia (strings of hearts).

More than a hundred genera made up the order Pentandria Monogynia. Among the species there were (from left to right, top to bottom): European heliotrope (Heliotropium europaeum), true forget-me-not (Myosotis scorpioides), common gromwell (Lithospermum officinale), common bugloss (Anchusa officinalis), common houndstongue (Cynoglossum officinale), common lungwort (Pulmonaria officinalis), common comfrey (Symphytum officinale), common honeywort (Cerinthe major), common borage (Borago officinalis), madwort (Asperugo procumbens), red monkswort (Lycopsis vesicaria, now Nonea vesicaria), Italian viper’s bugloss (Echium italicum), cahinca (Chiococca alba), pincushion (Diapensia lapponica), northern rock-jasmine (Androsace septentrionalis), cowslip (Primula veris), Alpine bells (Cortusa matthioli or Primula matthioli), Alpine snowbell (Soldanella alpina), common shooting star (Dodecatheon meadia), European cyclamen (Cyclamen purpurascens), bogbean (Menyanthes trifoliata), water violet (Hottonia palustris), Virginia waterleaf (Hydrophyllum virginianum), yellow loosestrife (Lysimachia vulgaris), red pimpernel (Anagallis arvensis), American theophrasta (Theophrasta americana), white indigoberry (Randia aculeata), Japanese azalea (Azalea indica, now Rhododendron indicum), Ceylon leadwort (Plumbago zeylanica), garden phlox (Phlox paniculata), field bindweed (Convolvulus arvensis), cypress vine (Ipomoea quamoclit), common Jacob’s ladder (Polemonium caeruleum), giant bellflower (Campanula latifolia), round-headed rampion (Phyteuma orbiculare), blue throatwort (Trachelium caeruleum), seaside brookweed (Samolus valerandi), common Jamaican bell (Portlandia grandiflora), coffee (Coffea arabica), Italian honeysuckle (Lonicera caprifolium), common blacktorch (Erithalis fruticosa), great morinda (Morinda citrifolia), common button tree (Conocarpus erectus), wild mussaenda (Mussaenda frondosa), genipapo (Genipa americana), common four o’clock (Mirabilis jalapa), common mullein (Verbascum thapsus), common devil’s trumpet (Datura metel), black henbane (Hyoscyamus niger), common tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum), deadly nightshade (Atropa belladonna), common groundcherry (Physalis viscosa), potato (Solanum tuberosum), bell pepper (Capsicum annuum), nux vomica (Strynchos nux-vomica), Assyrian plum (Cordia myxa), American brunfelsia (Brunfelsia americana), night-blooming cestrum (Cestrum nocturnum), goji (Lycium barbarum), satinleaf (Chrysophyllum oliviforme), common buckthorn (Rhamnus cathartica), mountain sweet (Ceanothus americanus), African boxwood (Myrsine africana), American bittersweet (Celastrus scandens), European spindle (Euonymus europaeus), Virginia sweetspire (Itea virginica), Cuban cedar (Cedrela odorata), mango tree (Mangifera indica), red currant (Ribes rubrum), common ivy (Hedera helix), grape vine (Vitis vinifera), Siberian miner’s lettuce (Claytonia sibirica), common chaff-flower (Achyranthes aspera), common cockscomb (Celosia cristata), coral necklace (Illecebrum verticillatum), sea milkweed (Glaux maritima, now Lysimachia maritima), devil-pepper (Rauvolfia tetraphylla), sea mango (Cerbera manghas), lesser periwinkle (Vinca minor), oleander (Nerium oleander), red plumeria (Plumeria rubra), broad-leaf cameraria (Cameraria latifolia), string of hearts (Ceropegia candelabrum). Credits to Ivar Leidus (forget-me-not), Hans Hillewaert (gromwell, honeywort), Andreas Eichler (bugloss, comfrey), H. Zell (borage, cowslip, coffee, tobacco, potato, mountain sweet, spindle), Hermann Schachner (madwort), Scott Zona (cahinca, cameraria), Opioła Jerzy (Alpine bells), Agnes Monkelbaan (cyclamen), J.-H. Janßen (water violet), Frank Vicentz (loosestrife, cockscomb), Reuven Karp (pimpernel), Smithsonian Institute (theophrasta), Bob Peterson (indigoberry), J. M. Garg (leadwort), Anneli Salo (bindweed), Hafiz Issadeen (cypress vine), Erlend Bjørtvedt (bellflower), Javier Martin (throatwort), Raffi Kojian (Jamaican bell), Stefan Lefnaer (honeysuckle), Callie Oldfield (blacktorch), Ulf Mehlig (button tree), João Medeiros (genipapo), Zoya Akulova (groundcherry), Marco Schmidt (Assyrian plum), Andel Früh (brunfelsia), Cary Bass (cestrum), Danny S. (goji), Homer Edward Price (satinleaf), Krzysztof Ziarnek (buckthorn), Carla Antonini (mango), Stefan Kampf (currant), Isidre Blanc (ivy), Wouter Hagens (grape vine), Walter Siegmund (miner’s lettuce), Jeevan Jose (chaff-flower), Christian Fischer (sea milkweed), Christer Johansson (periwinkle), Ian W. Fieggen (oleander), Indian Biodiversity Portal (string of hearts), and Wikimedia users Aroche (heliotrope, brookweed), Fornax (houndstongue, rock jasmine), Belladona2 (lungwort), Cerencin (viper’s bugloss), Alinja (pincushion), Cptcv (snowbell), Uoaei1 (bogbean), Jnn (azalea), Epibase (phlox), Tigerente (rampion), The Photographer (morinda), Vinayaraj (mussaenda, nux vomica, devil pepper), Wildfeuer (four o’clock), 428mdk09 (mullein), Better days came (trumpet), Imanrtin6 (henbane), Aktron (nightshade), Carstor (bell pepper), JMK (African boxwood), SB_Johnny (sweetspire), Weddi (coral necklace), BotBln (sea mango), and KayEss (plumeria).

5.2 Pentandria digynia (“five males and two females”), five stamens and two pistils in a hermaphrodite flower: Periploca (silkvines), Cynanchum (dog-strangling vines), Apocynum (dogbanes), Asclepias (milkweeds), Stapelia (carrion flowers), Herniaria (rupturewort), Chenopodium (goosefoots), Beta (beets), Salsola (saltworts), Anabasis (anabases), Cressa (alkaliweeds), Trianthema (pigweeds), Gomphrena (bachelor buttons), Bosea (yervamora), Ulmus (elms), Nama (fiddleleaves), Heuchera (alumroots), Swertia (felworts), Gentiana (gentians), Phyllis (phyllis), Eryngium (sea hollies), Hydrocotyle (water pennyworts), Sanicula (sanicles), Astrantia (masterworts), Bupleurum (hare’s ears), Echinophora (thorn-bearers), Tordylium (hartworts), Caucalis (bur-parsley), Artedia (artedia), Daucus (carrots), Ammi (false bishop’s weeds), Bunium (black cumin), Conium (hemlocks), Selinum (milk parsleys), Athamanta (athamantas), Peucedanum (hog’s fennels), Crithmum (sea fennels), Cachrys (cachrys), Hasselquistia (Egyptian hartwort), Ferula (giant fennels and asafoetidas), Laserpitium (sermountains), Heracleum (hogweeds), Ligusticum (lovages), Angelica (angelicas), Sium (water-parsnips), Sison (stone-parsnips), Bubon (mountain-parsnips), Cuminum (cumin), Oenanthe (water dropworts), Phellandrium (water dropworts and lovages), Cicuta (water hemlocks), Aethusa (fool’s parsley), Coriandrum (corianders), Sandix (cicelies and shepherd’s-needles), Chaerophyllum (chervils), Imperatoria (true masterwort), Seseli (moon carrots and fennels), Thapsia (deadly carrots), Pastinaca (parsnips), Smyrnium (alexanders), Anethum (dill), Carum (caraway), Pimpinella (anis), Apium (celery and parsley), Aegopodium (ground elders).

The order Pentandria Digynia included the following species (from left to right, top to bottom): common silkvine (Periploca graeca), acute dog-strangling vine (Cynanchum acutum), fly-trap dogbane (Apocynum androsaemifolium), white milkweed (Asclepias variegata), starfish flower (Stapelia hirsuta), smooth rupturewort (Herniaria glabra), white goosefoot (Chenopodium album), beet (Beta vulgaris), common saltwort (Salsola soda), common alkaliweed (Cressa cretica), black pigweed (Trianthema portulacastrum), bachelor button (Gomphrena globosa), American elm (Ulmus americana), American alumroot (Heuchera americana), common felwort (Swertia perennis), great yellow gentian (Gentiana lutea), culantro (Eryngium foetidum), marsh pennywort (Hydrocotyle vulgaris), common sanicle (Sanicula europaea), great masterwort (Astrantia major), sickle-leaved hare’s ear (Bupleurum falcatum), Mediterranean hartwort (Tordylium apulum), bur-parsley (Caucalis platycarpos), artedia (Artedia squamata), carrot (Daucus carota), false bishop’s weed (Ammi majus), black cumin (Bunium bulbocastanum), poison hemlock (Conium maculatum), hog’s fennel (Peucedanum officinale), sea fennel (Crithmum maritimum), giant fennel (Ferula communis), broad-leaved sermountain (Laserpitium latifolium), common hogweed (Heracleum sphondylium), Scots lovage (Ligusticum scoticum), garden angelica (Angelica archangelica), great water-parsnip (Sium latifolium), cumin (Cuminum cyminum), tubular water dropwort (Oenanthe fistulosa), cowbane (Cicuta virosa), fool’s parsley (Aethusa cynapium), coriander (Coriandrum sativum), shepherd’s-needle (Scandix pecten-veneris), bulbous-chervil (Chaerophyllum bulbosum), true masterwort (Imperatoria ostruthium or Peucedanum ostruthium), fennel (Seseli foeniculum, now Foeniculum vulgare), villous deadly carrot (Thapsia villosa), parsnip (Pastinaca sativa), alexander (Smyrnium olusatrum), dill (Anethum graveolens), caraway (Carum carvi), anis (Pimpinella anisum), celery (Apium graveolens), ground elder (Aegopodium podagraria). Credits to Isidre Blanc (dog-strangling vine), Stan Shebs (dogbane), Eurico Zimbres (starfish flower), Kristian Peters (rupturewort), Luigi Rignanese (saltwort), Michael J. Plagens (pigweed), Melissa McMasters (elm), Derek Ramsey (alumroot), Bernd Haynold (felwort), H. Zell (masterwort, hemlock, hogweed, cowbane, fool’s parsley, fennel, celery), Donald Hobern (hartwort), Stefan Lefnaer (bur-parsley), Daniel Villafruela (false bishop’s weed), Radio Tonreg (hog’s fennel), Jean Tosti (giant fennel), Meneerke Bloem (sermountain, true masterwort), Christian Fischer (angelica, water dropwort), Jeremy Halls (water-parsnip), G. Hagedorn (shepherd’s-needle), Franz Xaver (chervil, ground elder), Magnus Manske (parsnip), Tato Grasso (alexander), Matt Lavin (dill), Rolf Engstrand (caraway), Raffi Kojian (anis), Wikimedia users Lucarelli (silkvine), Rasbak (beet), Vinayaraj (bachelor button), Philipendula (gentian), Mokkie (culantro), Alians PL (pennywort), Fornax (hare’s ear), Ixitixel (carrot), Aroche (sea fennel), Stemonitis (lovage), Rlevse (coriander), and flickr users Gaspa (black cumin) and alliumherbal (cumin).

5.3 Pentandria Trigynia (“five males and three females”), five stamens and three pistils in a hermaphrodite flower: Rhus (sumacs), Viburnum (viburnums), Cassine (false olives), Sambucus (elders), Staphylea (bladdernuts), Tamarix (tamarisks), Turnera (turneras), Telephium (telephiums), Corrigiola (strapwort), Pharnaceum (carpetweeds), Alsine (chickweeds), Basella (Indian spinachs), Sarothra (orangegrass).

The 12 species in this image were in the order Pentandria Trigynia (from left to right, top to bottom): ladder’s sumac (Rhus coriaria), wayfarer (Viburnum lantana), Cape saffron (Cassine peragua), European black elder (Sambucus nigra), European bladdernut (Staphylea pinnata), French tamarisk (Tamarix gallica), yellow alder (Turnera ulmifolia), common telephium (Telephium imperati), strapwort (Corrigiola litoralis), chickweed (Alsine media, now Stellaria media), Malabar spinach (Basella alba), orangegrass (Sarothra gentianoides, now Hypericum gentianoides). Credits to Isidre Blanc (wayfarer), Sten Porse (bladdernut), Michael Wolf (yellow alder), Gideon Pisanti (telephium), Bob Peterson (orangegrass), and Wikimedia users Aroche (strapwort) and Shizhao (Malabar spinach).

5.4 Pentandria Tetragynia (“five males and four females”), five stamens and four pistils in a hermaphrodite flower: Parnassia (grass of Parnassus).

5.5 Pentandria Pentagynia (“five males and five females”), five stamens and five pistils in a hermaphrodite flower: Aralia (spikenards), Barreria (a species of unresolved identity), Statice (statices), Linum (flaxes), Aldrovanda (waterwheels), Drosera (sundews), Crassula (crassulas), Suriana (bay cedar), Sibbaldia (sibbaldia).

5.6 Pentandria Polygynia (“five males and many females”), five stamens and many pistils in a hermaphrodite flower: Myosurus (mousetails).

(From left to right, top to bottom) A single species, the grass-of-Parnassus (Parnassia palustris) made up the order Pentandria Tetragynia. The following eight species were in the order Pentandria Pentagynia: devil’s walkingstick (Aralia spinosa), common statice (Statice limonium, now Limonium vulgare), common flax (Linum usitatissimum), waterwheel (Aldrovanda vesiculosa), common sundew (Drosera rotundifolia), pine crassula (Crassula tetragona), bay cedar (Suriana maritima), creeping sibbaldia (Sibbaldia procumbens). The last species, the mousetail (Myosurus minimus), was the only one in the order Pentandria Polygynia. Credits to James H. Miller & Ted Bodner (devil’s walkingstick), Olivier Pichard (statice), Denis Barthel (waterwheel), Michal Rubeš (sundew), André Karwath (crassula), B. Navez (bay cedar), Wikimedia users Tigerente (grass-of-Parnassus), 4d44 (flax) and Fornax (mousetail), and flickr user pellaea (sibbaldia).

6. Hexandria (“six males”)

“Six husbands in each marriage”, i.e., six stamens in a hermaphrodite flower.

6.1 Hexandria Monogynia (“six males and one female”), six stamens and one pistil in a hermaphrodite flower: Bromelia (large spiny bromeliads), Tillandsia (airplants), Renealmia (airplant mosses), Burmannia (bluethreads), Tradescantia (spiderworts), Pontederia (pickerel weeds), Galanthus (snowdrops), Leucojum (snowbells), Narcissus (daffodils), Pancratium (rain flowers), Crinum (swamplilies), Amaryllis (amaryllis and rain lilies), Bulbocodium (meadow-saffrons), Aphyllanthes (straw lily), Allium (garlics, leeks, onions, chives), Lilium (true lilies), Fritillaria (fritillaries), Uvularia (bellworts), Gloriosa (glory lily), Erythronium (dog’s-tooth-violet), Tulipa (tulips), Ornithogalum (stars-of-Bethlehem), Scilla (squills), Asphodelus (asphodels), Anthericum (St. Bernard’s-lilies), Leontice (lion flowers), Asparagus (asparaguses), Convallaria (lily-of-the-valley, solomon’s-seals), Polianthes (tuberose), Hyacinthus (hyacinths and bluebells), Cyanella (little blues), Aletris (colicroots), Yucca (yuccas), Aloe (aloes), Agave (agaves), Hemerocallis (daylilies), Hypoxis (stargrasses), Acorus (sweetflags), Orontium (golden club), Haemanthus (blood lilies), Calaus (rotang), Juncus (rushes), Hippocratea (hippocratea), Richardia (pusleys), Achras (sapodilla), Prinos (winterberries), Berberis (barberries), Loranthus (mistletoes), Frankenia (seaheaths), Peplis (water-purslane).

The order Hexandria Monogynia included (from left to right, top to bottom): karatas bromeliad (Bromelia karatas), narrowleaf airplant (Tillandsia tenuifolia), Spannish moss (Renealmia usneoides, now Tillandsia usneoides), Virginia spiderwort (Tradescantia virginiana), common pickerel weed (Pontederia cordata), common snowdrop (Galanthus nivalis), summer snowbell (Leucojum aestivum), poet’s daffodil (Narcissus poeticus), Ceylon’s rain flower (Pancratium zeylanicum), American swamplily (Crinum americanum), belladonna-lily (Amaryllis belladonna), spring meadow saffron (Bulbocodium vernum, now Colchicum bulbocodium), straw lily (Aphyllanthes monspeliensis), garlic (Allium sativum), Madonna lily (Lilium candidum), imperial fritillary (Fritillaria imperialis ), perfoliate bellwort (Uvularia perfoliata), glory lily (Gloriosa superba), dog’s-tooth-violet (Erythronium dens-canis), garden tulip (Tulipa gesneriana), Prussian asparagus (Ornithogalum pyrenaicum), Alpine squill (Scilla bifolia), onion-leaved asphodel (Asphodelus fistulosus), branched St. Bernard’s-lily (Anthericum ramosum), common lion flower (Leontice leontopelatum), garden asparagus (Asparagus officinalis), lily-of-the-valley (Convallaria majalis), tuberose (Polianthes tuberosa), common hyacinth (Hyacinthus orientalis), common colicroot (Aletris farinosa), aloe yucca (Yucca aloifolia), tiger aloe (Aloe variegata), centuryplant (Agave americana), lemon lily (Hemerocallis lilioasphodelus), South American stargrass (Hypoxis decumbens), sweetflag (Acorus calamus), golden club (Orontium aquaticum), blood lily (Haemanthus coccineus), rotang (Calamus rotang), sharp rush (Juncus acutus), Florida pusley (Richardia scabra), sapodilla (Achras zapota, now Manilkara zapota), common winterberry (Prinos verticillatus, now Ilex verticillata), common barberry (Berberis vulgaris), western mistletoe (Loranthus occidentalis, now Oryctanthus occidentalis), common seaheath (Frankenia laevis), water purslane (Peplis portula, now Lythrum portula). Credits to Kurt Stüber (karatas, spiderwort, snowbell), Michael Wolf (airplant), Christian Hummert (daffodil), Muhammad Mahdi Karim (rain flower), Gerald J. Lenhard (swamplily), Stan Shebs (belladonna-lily), Muriel Bendel (meadow saffron), Hans Hillewaert (straw lily, asphodel), Jason Hollinger (bellwort), Jean-Jacques Milan (glory lily), Accord H. Brisse (dog’s-tooth-violet, seaheath), Andreas Eichler (squill), Albert Häglsperger (St. Bernard’s lily), Kristian Peters (asparagus), H. Zell (lily of the valley, sweetflag), Jayesh Patil (tuberose), Stanislav Doronenko (lemon lily), Bernard Dupont (rotang), Krzysztof Ziarnek (rush), Bob Peterson (pusley), Fritz Flohr Reynolds (winterberry), Teun Spaans (barberry), Reinaldo Aguilar (mistletoe), Olivier Pichard (water-purslane) and Wikimedia users KENPEI (pickerel weed, centuryplant, blood lily), Caroig (snowdrop), AfroBrazilian (garlic), Gidip (Madonna lily), Fizykaa (tulip), Patrice78500 (Prussian asparagus), Averater (lion flower), Eitan f (hyacinth), 1978 (stargrass), Aruna (sapodilla).

6.2 Hexandria Digynia (“sex males and two females”), six stamens and two pistils in a hermaphrodite flower: Velezia (velezia), Oryza (rice), Atraphaxis (atraphaxis).

The small order Hexandria Digynia contained this three species (from left to right): velezia (Velezia rigida), rice (Oryza sativa), spiny atraphaxis (Atraphaxis spinosa). Credits to Barry Breckling (velezia) and Ori Fragman-Sapir (atraphaxis).

6.3 Hexandria Trigynia (“six males and three females”), six stamens and three pistils in a hermaphrodite flower: Flagellaria (whip vine), Rumex (docks and sorrels), Scheuchzeria (podgrass), Triglochin (arrowgrasses), Melanthium (bunchflowers), Medeola (Indian cucumber and some asparagus), Trillium (trilliums), Menispermum (moonseeds), Saururus (lizard’s tail), Colchicum (meadow saffrons), Helonias (swamp pink).

These 11 species (from left to right, top to bottom) were in the order Hexandria Trigynia: whip vine (Flagellaria indica), patience dock (Rumex patientia), podgrass (Scheuchzeria palustris), marsh arrowgrass (Triglochin palustris), Virginia buchflower (Melanthium virginicum), Indian cucumber (Medeola virginiana), nodding trillium (Trillium cernuum), Canadian moonseed (Menispermum canadense), American lizard’s tail (Saururus cernuus), common meadow-saffron (Colchicum autumnale), swamp pink (Helonias bullata). Credits to Raffi Kojian (whip vine), Emőke Dénes (dock), Kristian Peters (arrowgrass), Fritz Flohr Reynolds (lizard’s tail), H. Zell (swamp pink), and Wikimedia users Bertblok (podgrass), Uleli (bunchflower), Jomegat (Indian cucumber), Fungus Guy (trillium), Nadiatalent (moonseed), Cquoi (meadow-saffron).

6.4 Hexandria Tetragynia (“six males and four females”), six stamens and four pistils in a hermaphrodite flower: Petiveria (guinea henweed).

6.5 Hexandria Polygynia (“six males and many females”), six stamens and many pistils in a hermaphrodite flower: Alisma (water-plantains).

The guinea henweed (Petiveria alliacea, left) was the single species in the order Hexandria Tetragynia, and the common water-plantain (Alisma plantago-aquatica, right) was one of the few species in the order Hexandria Polygynia, Credits to Wikimedia users Toluaye (guinea henweed) and Bff (water-plantain).

Several plants that are indeed genetically related, such as those that would later be called “Umbelliferae” and “Liliaceae”, appear in the same orders already in Linnaeus’ System, but there are yet many bizarre discrepancies. For example, how could he classify the rice so distant from other cereals and grasses?

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References:

Linnaeus, C. (1758) Systema Naturae per regna tria Naturae…

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Filed under Systematics, taxonomy

Tagged as Linnaeus, Linné, Linnean taxonomy, polyamory, polygamy, profane flowers, promiscuity, sexual classification, Species Plantarum, Systema Naturae

by Piter Keo | April 12, 2016 · 9:16 am

The history of Systematics: Animals in Systema Naturae, 1758 (part 4)

by Piter Kehoma Boll

This is the fourth and last part of this series of posts. See here part 1, part 2 and part 3.

I’m presenting here the 6 th and last class of animals: Vermes. It included basically anything that was neither a vertebrate nor an arthropod.

6. Vermes (worms)

Heart with one ventricle and one auricle; cold pus.
Spiracles absent?
Jaws multiple, various.
Penises several in hermaphrodites, androgynous.
Senses: tentacles, head absent (rarely with eyes, no ears and nostrils).
Covering: sometimes calcareous or absent, if not spines.
Support: neither feet nor fins.

Vermes were classified according the form of the body in 5 orders: Intestina, Mollusca, Testacea, Lithophyta and Zoophyta.

6.1 Intestina (internal ones or intestines), simple, naked and without appendages: Gordius (horsehair worms), Furia (the legendary worm), Lumbricus (earthworms and lugworms), Ascaris (roundworms and pinworms), Fasciola (liver flukes), Hirudo (leeches), Myxine (hagfishes) and Teredo (shipworms).

Linnaeus’ heterogeneous order Intestina included (from left to right, top to bottom) the water horsehair worm (Gordius aquaticus), the legendary hell’s fury (Furia infernalis), the common earthworm (Lumbricus terrestris), the giant roundworm (Ascaris lumbricoides), the sheep liver fluke (Fasciola hepatica), the European medicinal leech (Hirudo medicinalis), the Atlantic hagfish (Myxine glutinosa), and the naval shipworm (Teredo navalis). Credits to Jiří Duchoň (horsehair worm), Michael Linnenbach (earthworm), Wikimedia user GlebK (leech), Arnstein Rønning (hagfish), Poi Australia [poi-australia.com.au] (shipworm).

6.2 Mollusca (soft ones), simple, naked and with appendages: Limax (land slugs), Doris (doriid sea slugs), Tethys (tethydid sea slugs), Nereis (polychaetes), Aphrodita (sea mice), Lernaea (anchor worms), Priapus (priapulid worms and anemones), Scyllaea (scyllaeid sea slugs), Holothuria (salps and man o’ wars), Triton (possibly some sort of sea slug), Sepia (octopuses, squids and cuttlefishes), Medusa (jellyfishes), Asterias (starfishes), Echinus (sea urchins and sand dollars).

Among the animals that Linnaeus put under Mollusca are (from left to right, top to bottom) the leopard slug (Limax maximus), the warty dorid (Doris verrucosa), the fringed tethydid (Tethys leporina, now Tethys fimbria), the slender ragworm (Nereis pelagica), the sea mouse (Aphrodita aculeata), the common anchor worm (Lernaea cyprinacea), the cactus worm (Priapus humanus, now Priapulus caudatus), the sargassum nudibranch (Scyllaea pelagica), the Portuguese man o’ war (Holothuria physalis, now Physalia physalis), the common cuttlefish (Sepia officinalis), the moon jellyfish (Medusa aurita, now Aurelia aurita), the common starfish (Asterias rubens), and the European edible sea urchin (Echinus esculentus). Credits to Marina Jacob (slug), Wikimedia user Seascapeza (dorid), Pino Bucca (tethydid), Alexander Semenov (ragworm), Michael Maggs (sea mouse), glsc.usgs.gov (anchor worm), Shunkina Ksenia (cactus worm), Universidad de Olviedo (sargassum nudibranch), Hans Hillewaert (cuttlefish, jellyfish and starfish), and Bengt Littorin (sea urchin).

6.3 Testacea (covered with a shell), simple, covered by a calcareous shelter: Chiton (chitons), Lepas (barnacles), Pholas (piddocks and angelwings), Myes (soft-shell clams), Solen (razor clams), Tellina (tellins), Cardium (cockles), Donax (wedge shells), Venus (venus clams), Spondylus (thorny oysters), Chama (jewel box shells), Arca (ark clams), Ostrea (true oysters), Anomia (saddle oysters), Mytilus (mussels), Pinna (pen shells), Argonauta (paper nautiluses), Nautilus (nautiluses), Conus (cone snails), Cypraea (cowries), Bulla (bubble shells), Voluta (volutes), Buccinum (true whelks), Strombus (true conchs), Murex (murex snails), Trochus (top snails), Turbo (turban snails), Helix (land snails), Nerita (nerites), Haliotis (abalones), Patella (limpets and brachiopods), Dentalium (tusk shells) and Serpula (serpulid worms and worm snails).

Linnaeus’ diverse order Testacea included (from left to right, top to bottom): the West Indian green chiton (Chiton tuberculatus), the smooth gooseneck barnacle (Lepas anatifera), the common piddock (Pholas dactylus), the sand gaper (Myes arenaria, now Mya arenaria), the sheath razor (Solen vagina), the sunrise tellin (Tellina radiata), the great ribbed cockle (Cardium costatum), the abrupt wedge shell (Donax trunculus), the warty venus (Venus verrucosa), the spiny scallop (Spondylus gaederopus), the lazarus jewel box (Chama lazarus), the Noah’s Ark shell (Arca noae), the European flat oyster (Ostrea edulis), the European jingle shell (Anomia ephippium), the blue mussle (Mytilus edulis), the rough penshell (Pinna rudis), the greater argonaut (Argonauta argo), the chambered nautilus (Nautilus pompilius), the marbled cone (Conus marmoreus), the tiger cowry (Cypraea tigris), the Pacific bubble (Bulla ampulla), the music volute (Voluta musica), the common whelk (Buccinum undatum), the West Indian fighting conch (Strombus pugilis), the caltrop murex (Murex tribulus), the maculated top snail (Trochus maculatus), the tapestry turban (Turbo petholatus), the Roman snail (Helix pomatia), the bleeding tooth nerite (Nerita peloronta), Midas ear abalone (Haliotis midae), the Mediterranean limpet (Patella caerulea), the elephant tusk shell (Dentalium elephantinum), the sand worm snail (Serpula arenaria, now Thylacodes arenarius). Credits to James St. John (chiton), Ruben Vera (barnacle), Valter Jacinto (piddock), Oscar Bos [ecomare.nl] (sand gaper), Guido & Philippe Poppe [conchology.be] (razor), femorale.com (tellin, cockle, scallop, ark shell, jingle shell, bubble, fighting conch, nerite, abalone, tusk shell), Hans Hillewaert (wedge shell, venus, nautilus, whelk), Richard Parker (jewel box, marbled cone), Jan Johan ter Poorten (oyster), Wikimedia user Hectonichus (penshell, volute), Bernd Hoffmann (argonaut), Samuel Chow (cowry), Frédéric Ducarme (turban), H. Krisp (Roman snail), Wikimedia user Esculapio (limpet), Matthieu Sontag (worm snail).

6.4 Lithophyta (stone plants), composite, growing on a solid base: Tubipora (organ pipe corals), Millepora (fire corals), Madrepora (stone corals and Acetabularia algae).

Three species listed by Linnaeus under Lithophyta (from left to right): organ pipe coral (Tubipora musica), sea ginger (Millepora alcicornis), zigzag coral (Madrepora oculata). Credits to Aaron Gustafson (pipe coral), Nick Hobgood (sea ginger), NOAA, U.S.’ National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (zigzag coral).

6.5 Zoophyta (animal plants), growing like plants, with animated flowers: Isis (bamboo corals), Gorgonia (sea fans), Alcyonum (soft corals), Tubularia (pipe corals), Eschara (bryozoans and red algae), Corallina (coralline algae), Sertularia (bryozoans and hydrozoans), Hydra (hydras, cilliates and rotifers), Pennatula (sea pens), Taenia (tapeworms), Volvox (volvox algae and amLinebae).

Some species in Linnaeus’ order Zoophyta were (from left to right, top to bottom): the Venus sea fan (Gorgonia flabellum), the dead man’s fingers (Alcyonium digitatum), the oaten pipe hydroid (Tubullaria indivisa), the leafy bryozoan (Eschara foliacea, now Flustra foliacea), the coral weed (Corallina officinalis), the squirrel’s tail (Sertularia argentea), the grooved vorticella (Hydra convallaria, now Vorticella convallaria), the phosphorescent sea pen (Pennatula phosphorea), the pork tapeworm (Taenia solium), and the globe volvox (Volvox globator). Credits to Greg Grimes (sea fan), Bengt Littorin (dead man’s fingers), Bernard Picton (pipe hydroid, sea pen), biopix.com (bryozoan), Lovell and Libby Langstroth (coral weed), National Museums Northern Ireland (squirrel’s tail), D. J. Patterson (vorticella and volvox), Pulich Health Image Library (tapeworm).

Linnaeus may have made some mistakes while classifying mammals, birds, amphibians, fishes and insects, but nothing compares to the mess that his class Vermes was. It included animals from many different phyla and even red and green algae! Sometimes the same genus included both animals and plants.

And this concludes our presentation of animals in Linnaeus’ 1758 edition of Systema Naturae.

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References:

Linnaeus. 1758. Systema Naturae per Regna Tria Naturae…

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Filed under Algae, Systematics, Zoology

Tagged as algae were animals, anthozoa, bryozoans, cnidarians, intestina, invertebrates, Linnaean taxonomy, Linnaeus, Linné, Linnean taxonomy, lithophyta, mollusks, mollusks are worms, rotifers, Systema Naturae, systematics, taxonomy, worms, zoophyta

by Piter Keo | April 5, 2016 · 11:13 pm

The history of Systematics: Animals in Systema Naturae, 1758 (part 3)

by Piter Kehoma Boll

This is the third part of this series of posts. See here part 1, part 2 and part 4.

In this post I’ll present a single class: Insecta. At that time, however, Insecta included not only what we call insects today, but all arthropods.

5. Insecta (Insects)

Heart with one ventricle and one auricle; cold pus.
Spiracles: pores at the sides of the body.
Jaws lateral.
Penises entering.
Senses: tongue, eyes, antennae in head without brain (no ears and nostrils).
Covering: armored sustaining bony skin.
Support: feet, in some wings.

Insects were classified according to the number and aspect of the wings and included 7 orders: Coleoptera, Hemiptera, Lepidoptera, Neuroptera, Hymenoptera, Diptera, and Aptera.

5.1 Coleoptera (case wings), with four wings, the forewings fully hardened: Scarabeus (scarab beetles), Dermestes (larder beetles), Hister (clown beetles), Attelabus (leaf-rolling weevils), Curculio (true weevils), Silpha (carrion beetles), Coccinella (ladybugs), Cassida (tortoise beetles), Chrysomela (leaf beetles), Meloe (blister beetles), Tenebrio (darkling beetles), Mordella (tumbling flower beetles), Staphylinus (rove beetles), Cerambyx (longhorn beetles), Leptura (flower longhorn beetles), Cantharis (soldier beetles, glowworms), Elater (click beetles), Cicindela (tiger beetles), Buprestis (jewel beetles), Dytiscus (diving beetles), Carabus (ground beetles), Necydalis (wasp beetles), Forficula (earwigs), Blatta (cockroaches), Gryllus (crickets, locusts, grasshoppers, mantises, stick bugs).

Species grouped by Linnaeus under Coleoptera (from left to right, top to bottom): sacred scarab (Scarabaeus sacer), larder beetle (Dermestes lardarius), four-spotted clown beetle (Hister quadrimaculatus), hazel-leaf roller weevil (Attelabus coryli, currently Apoderus coryli), nut weevil (Curculio nucum), dark carrion beetle (Silpha obscura), seven-spotted ladybug (Coccinella septempunctata), green tortoise beetle (Cassida viridis), red poplar leaf beetle (Chrysomela populi), black blister beetle (Meloe proscarabaeus), mealworm beetle (Tenebrio molitor), pointed tumbling flower beetle (Mordella aculeata), red-winged rove beetle (Staphylinus erythropterus), great capricorn beetle (Cerambyx cerdo), banded flower longhorn beetle (Leptura quadrifasciata), dull soldier beetle (Cantharis fusca), red click beetle (Elater ferrugineus), green tiger beetle (Cicindela campestris), eight-spotted jewel beetle (Buprestis octoguttata), broad diving beetle (Dytiscus latissimus), hard ground beetle (Carabus coriaceus), greater wasp beetle (Necydalis major), European earwig (Forficula auricularia), common cockroach (Blatta orientalis), and common field cricket (Gryllus campestris). Credits to Wikimedia user Sarefo (scarab), Guttorm Flatabø (larder beetle), Didier Descouens (clown beetle, tumbling flower beetle), entomart [www.entomart.be] (weevils, tortoise beetle), Dominik Stodulski (ladybug), Wikimedia user Quartl (leaf beetle, flower longhorn beetle), Václav Hanzlík (rove beetle), Franz Xaver (capricorn beetle), James K. Lindsey (soldier beetle), Stanislav Krejčik (click beetle), Olaf Leillinger (tiger beetle), Biopix [www.biopix.com] (diving beetle), Gyorgy Csoka (wasp beetle), Miroslav Deml (earwig), K Schneider (cockroach), Gilles San Martin (cricket).

5.2 Hemiptera (half wings): with four wings, the forewings half-hardened: Cicada (cicadas), Notonecta (backswimmers), Nepa (water scorpions), Cimex (shield bugs and bedbugs), Aphis (aphids), Chermes (wooly aphids), Coccus (scale insects), Thrips (thrips).

Linnaeus’ Hemiptera included the following species (from left to right, top to bottom): ash cicada (Cicada orni), common backswimmer (Notonecta glauca), common water scorpion (Nepa cinerea), common bedbug (Cimex lectularius), elder aphid (Aphis sambuci), pineapple gall aldegid (Chermes abietis, currently Adelges abietis), brown soft scale (Coccus hesperidum), and dandelion thrips (Thrips physapus). Credits to Wikimedia user Hectonichus (cicada), Holger Gröschl (backswimmer), Wikimedia user XenonX3 (water scorpion), James K. Lindsey (aphid), Magne Flåten (aldegid), Whitney Cranshaw (soft scale), thrips.w.interiowo.pl (thrips).

5.3 Lepidoptera (scale wings), with four scaly wings: Papilio (butterflies), Phalaena (moths), Sphinx (hawk moths).

Among the species put by Linnaeus under Lepidoptera, there were (from left to right, top to bottom): paris peacock (Papilio paris), gothic moth (Phalaena typical, now Naenia typical), privet hawk moth (Sphinx ligustri). Creditos to Wikimedia user Peellden (paris peacock), Danny Chapman (gothic moth), Wikimedia user Jdiemer (hawk moth).

Among the species put by Linnaeus under Lepidoptera, there were (from left to right): paris peacock (Papilio paris), gothic moth (Phalaena typica, now Naenia typica), and privet hawk moth (Sphinx ligustri). Credits to Wikimedia user Peellden (paris peacock), Danny Chapman (gothic moth), Wikimedia user Jdiemer (hawk moth).

5.4 Neuroptera (veined wings), with four membranous wings and an unarmed tail: Libellula (dragonflies and damselflies), Ephemera (mayflies), Phryganea (caddislies), Hemerobius (lacewings, antlions, alderflies), Panorpa (scorpionflies), Raphidia (snakeflies).

Linnaeus order Neuroptera included (from left to right, top to bottom) the four-spotted chaser (Libellula quadrimaculata), common mayfly (Ephemera vulgata), greater caddisly (Phryganea grandis), common brown lacewing (Hemerobius humulinus), common scorpionfly (Panorpa communis), and common snakefly (Raphidia ophiopsis). Credits to Wikimedia user Bj.schoenmakers (mayfly), Donald Hobern (caddisfly), Wikimedia user AfroBrazilian (lacewing), André Karwath (scorpionfly).

5.5 Hymenoptera (membranous wings), with four membranous wings and an armed tail: Cynips (gall wasps), Tenthredo (sawflies), Ichneumon (parasitoid wasps), Sphex (digger wasps and potter wasps), Vespa (hornets and wasps), Apis (bees), Formica (ants), Mutilla (velvet ants).

Linnaeus order Neuroptera included (from left to right, top to bottom) the common gall wasp (Cynips quercusfolii), figwort sawfly (Tenthredo scrophulariae), common parasitoid wasp (Ichneumon sarcitorius), South American potter wasp (Sphex argillacea, now Zeta argillaceum), European hornet (Vespa crabro), Western honey bee (Apis mellifera), red wood ant (Formica rufa), European velvet ant (Mutilla europaea). Credits to Wikimedia user Wofl (gall wasp), James K. Lindsey (sawfly, parasitoid wasp), Sean McCann (potter wasp), Wikipedia user Flugwapsch62 (hornet), Böhringer Friedrich (bee), Adam Opio¬ła (ant), Valter Jacinto (velvet ant).

Linnaeus order Hymenoptera included (from left to right, top to bottom) the common gall wasp (Cynips quercusfolii), figwort sawfly (Tenthredo scrophulariae), common parasitoid wasp (Ichneumon sarcitorius), South American potter wasp (Sphex argillacea, now Zeta argillaceum), European hornet (Vespa crabro), Western honey bee (Apis mellifera), red wood ant (Formica rufa), and European velvet ant (Mutilla europaea). Credits to Wikimedia user Wofl (gall wasp), James K. Lindsey (sawfly, parasitoid wasp), Sean McCann (potter wasp), Wikimedia user Flugwapsch62 (hornet), Böhringer Friedrich (bee), Adam Opioła (ant), Valter Jacinto (velvet ant).

5.6 Diptera (two wings), with two wings: Oestrus (botflies), Tipula (craneflies and midges), Musca (houseflies, hoverflies, blowflies, snipe flies), Tabanus (horse-flies), Culex (mosquitoes), Empis (dance flies), Conops (thick-headed flies, hornflies, stable flies), Asilus (robber flies), Bombylius (beeflies), Hippobosca (louse flies).

In Diptera, Linnaeus included the sheep botly (Oestrus ovis), garden cranefly (Tipula hortorum), common housefly (Musca domestica), pale giant horse-fly (Tabanus bovinus), common house mosquito (Culex pipiens), northern dance fly (Empis borealis), yellow thick-headed fly (Conops flavipes), hornet robberfly (Asilus crabroniformis), large beefly (Bombylius major), and forest fly (Hippobosca equina). Credits to picotverd user from diptera.info (botfly), James K. Lindsey (cranefly, horse-fly, dance fly), Kamran Iftikhar (housefly), David Barillet-Portal (mosquito), Martin Harvey (robberfly), Richard Bartz (beefly), Wikimedia user Janswart (forest fly).

5.7 Aptera (no wings), without wings: Lepisma (silverfishes), Podura (springtails), Termes (termites and barklice), Pediculus (lice), Pulex (fleas), Acarus (mites and ticks), Phalangium (harvestmen, whip spider and whip scorpions), Aranea (spiders), Scorpio (scorpions), Cancer (crabs, lobsters, shrimp), Monoculus (tadpole shrimps, water fleas, horseshoe crabs), Oniscus (woodlice), Scolopendra (centipedes), Julus (milipedes).

The messy order Aptera included (from left to right, top to bottom) the silverfish (Lepisma saccharina), the water sprintail (Podura aquatic), the larger pale trogiid (Termes pulsatorium, now Trogium pulsatorium), the head louse (Pediculus humanus), the human flea (Pulex irritans), the flour mite (Acarus siro), the common harvestman (Phalangium opilio), the angular garden spider (Aranea angulata, now Araneus angulatus), the large clawed scorpion (Scorpio maurus), the brown crab (Cancer pagurus), the common tadpole shrimp (Monoculus apus, now Lepidurus apus), the common woodlouse (Oniscus asellus), the Amazonian giant centipede (Scolopendra gigantea), common millipede (Julus terrestris). Credits to Christian Fischer (silverfish, springtail), Josef Reischig (louse), Michael Wunderli (flea), Joel Mills (mite), Didier Descouens (harvestman), Thomas Kraft (spider), Guy Haimovitch (scorpion), Hans Hillewaert (crab), Christian Fischer (tadpole shrimp), Fritz Geller-Grimm (woodlouse), Katka Nemčoková (centipede), Carmen Juaréz/Pedro do Rego (millipede).

The messy order Aptera included (from left to right, top to bottom) the silverfish (Lepisma saccharina), the water springtail (Podura aquatica), the larger pale trogiid (Termes pulsatorium, now Trogium pulsatorium), the head louse (Pediculus humanus), the human flea (Pulex irritans), the flour mite (Acarus siro), the common harvestman (Phalangium opilio), the angular garden spider (Aranea angulata, now Araneus angulatus), the large clawed scorpion (Scorpio maurus), the brown crab (Cancer pagurus), the common tadpole shrimp (Monoculus apus, now Lepidurus apus), the common woodlouse (Oniscus asellus), the Amazonian giant centipede (Scolopendra gigantea), and the common millipede (Julus terrestris). Credits to Christian Fischer (silverfish, springtail), Josef Reischig (louse), Michael Wunderli (flea), Joel Mills (mite), Didier Descouens (harvestman), Thomas Kraft (spider), Guy Haimovitch (scorpion), Hans Hillewaert (crab), Christian Fischer (tadpole shrimp), Fritz Geller-Grimm (woodlouse), Katka Nemčoková (centipede), Carmen Juaréz/Pedro do Rego (millipede).

As one can notice, Linnaeus was pretty good at classifying hymenopterans, dipterans and lepidopterans. His orders Coleoptera and Hemiptera were not that bad too. Neuroptera was a little messy, but nothing compares to Aptera, where he put everything without wings, from silverfish to spiders, crabs and millipedes! It’s amazing how accurate he was with certain groups, but a complete disaster with others.

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References:

Linnaeus, C. 1758. Systema Naturae per regna tria naturae…

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Tagged as beetles, bugs, butterflies, cockroaches were beetles, dragonflies, fleas, flies, Insecta, insects, lice, Linnean taxonomy, mantises were crickets, moths, spider are insects, taxonomy

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