The Living World – Taxonomic Categories: NEET MCQs with Answers

15 free questions on The Living World – Taxonomic Categories for NEET (UG), starting with previous-year NEET and AIPMT questions. Try each one, then tap Show answer for the answer and a short explanation.

Syllabus covered: Taxonomic Categories: Need for classification; Taxonomy & Systematics; Concept of species and taxonomical hierarchy; Binomial nomenclature;

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Question 1

Previous-year question
Match Column I with Column II for the classification of mango and choose the correct option using the codes below. [NEET 2021 (Paper-2)]
Column I:
a. Division
b. Order
c. Family
d. Class
Column II:
i. Sapindales
ii. Anacardiaceae
iii. Dicotyledonae
iv. Angiospermae
  1. a–ii, b–iii, c–iv, d–i
  2. a–iii, b–iv, c–i, d–ii
  3. a–iv, b–i, c–iii, d–ii
  4. a–iv, b–i, c–ii, d–iii
Show answer
Answer: (D) a–iv, b–i, c–ii, d–iii
Explanation: In the taxonomic hierarchy of mango (Mangifera indica), the division is Angiospermae, class Dicotyledonae, order Sapindales and family Anacardiaceae. Hence a–iv, b–i, c–ii, d–iii.

Question 2

Previous-year question
Match the items given in Column-I with those in Column-II and select the correct option. [NEET 2018] Column-I: A. Herbarium B. Key C. Museum D. Catalogue Column-II: (i) A place having a collection of preserved plants and animals (ii) A list that enumerates methodically all the species found in an area with brief description aiding identification (iii) A place where dried and pressed plant specimens mounted on sheets are kept (iv) A booklet containing a list of characters and their alternates which are helpful in identification of various taxa
  1. A-(i); B-(iv); C-(iii); D-(ii)
  2. A-(iii); B-(ii); C-(i); D-(iv)
  3. A-(iii); B-(iv); C-(i); D-(ii)
  4. A-(ii); B-(iv); C-(iii); D-(i)
Show answer
Answer: (C) A-(iii); B-(iv); C-(i); D-(ii)
Explanation: Herbarium = dried, pressed specimens mounted on sheets (iii); Key = booklet of contrasting characters and their alternates (iv); Museum = collection of preserved plants and animals (i); Catalogue = methodical list of species of an area with brief descriptions (ii).

Question 3

Previous-year question
Select the correctly written scientific name of mango, which was first described by Carolus Linnaeus. [NEET 2019]
  1. Mangifera indica Car. Linn.
  2. Mangifera indica Linn.
  3. Mangifera indica
  4. Mangifera Indica
Show answer
Answer: (B) Mangifera indica Linn.
Explanation: The genus begins with a capital and the specific epithet with a small letter, both italicised, and the abbreviated name of the author who first described the species is written after the specific epithet in normal (non-italic) type. Hence Mangifera indica Linn.

Question 4

Previous-year question
Nomenclature is governed by certain universal rules. Which one of the following is CONTRARY to the rules of nomenclature? [NEET 2016]
  1. Biological names can be written in any language
  2. The first word in a biological name represents the genus name and the second is a specific epithet
  3. The names are written in Latin and are italicised
  4. When written by hand, the names are to be underlined
Show answer
Answer: (A) Biological names can be written in any language
Explanation: Biological names must be latinised regardless of their origin — they cannot be written in any language of choice. The other three statements are standard rules of binomial nomenclature.

Question 5

Previous-year question
The static concept of species was put forward by [AIPMT 1988]
  1. de Candolle
  2. Linnaeus
  3. Theophrastus
  4. Darwin
Show answer
Answer: (B) Linnaeus
Explanation: Carolus Linnaeus proposed the static (fixed) concept of species, according to which species are unchanging entities created in their present form; it is also known as the morphological concept of species. Darwin later replaced it with the dynamic, evolving concept of species.  

Question 6

Previous-year question
A taxon may be defined as [AIPMT 1992, 1990]
  1. a group of related families
  2. a group of related species
  3. a type of living organism
  4. a taxonomic group of any rank
Show answer
Answer: (D) a taxonomic group of any rank
Explanation: A taxon is a taxonomic group of any rank, from kingdom down to species, that is treated as a unit in classification. A group of related families is an order and a group of related species is a genus, so these describe particular ranks rather than the general term.

Question 7

Previous-year question
A group of plants or animals possessing similar traits, at any rank, is called a [AIPMT 1992, 1991]
  1. species
  2. genus
  3. order
  4. taxon
Show answer
Answer: (D) taxon
Explanation: Each unit or category of classification is termed a taxon. It represents a real group of organisms of any rank — kingdom, phylum, class, order, family, genus or species — whose members share similar traits.
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Question 8

Previous-year question
The term 'phylum' was given by [AIPMT 1992]
  1. Cuvier
  2. Haeckel
  3. Theophrastus
  4. Linnaeus
Show answer
Answer: (B) Haeckel
Explanation: Ernst Haeckel coined the term phylum, specifically for animals. Phylum is a rank below kingdom and above class, and it is equivalent to 'division' used in plant classification.

Question 9

Previous-year question
The correct sequence of taxonomic categories is [AIPMT 1992]
  1. class–phylum–tribe–order–family–genus–species
  2. division–class–family–tribe–order–genus–species
  3. division–class–order–family–tribe–genus–species
  4. phylum–order–class–tribe–family–genus–species
Show answer
Answer: (C) division–class–order–family–tribe–genus–species
Explanation: The correct descending sequence is Division–Class–Order–Family–Tribe–Genus–Species. Tribe is an intermediate taxonomic rank placed above genus but below family (and below subfamily), which is why it appears between family and genus in this sequence.

Question 10

Previous-year question
'Taxon' is the unit of a group of [AIPMT 1996]
  1. order
  2. taxonomy
  3. species
  4. genus
Show answer
Answer: (B) taxonomy
Explanation: A taxon is any taxonomic group or category — such as class, order, family, genus or species — that is recognised as a unit at any rank. Thus taxon is the unit group of taxonomy itself.

Question 11

Previous-year question
Which of the following is less general in its characters as compared with a genus? [AIPMT 2001]
  1. Species
  2. Division
  3. Class
  4. Family
Show answer
Answer: (A) Species
Explanation: Species is the smallest and lowest of the taxonomic categories, whose members share almost all their characters; it is therefore the least general (most specific) group. Genus stands immediately above species and includes species with slightly fewer similarities, while family, class and division are progressively more general.

Question 12

Previous-year question
Species are regarded as [AIPMT 2003]
  1. real basic units of classification
  2. the lowest units of classification
  3. an artificial concept of the human mind that cannot be defined in absolute terms
  4. real units of classification devised by taxonomists
Show answer
Answer: (A) real basic units of classification
Explanation: A species is the basic unit of biological classification and a real taxonomic rank, defined as the largest group of organisms capable of interbreeding to produce fertile offspring. Because its members share the greatest number of common characters, it is the real basic unit of classification rather than an artificial construct.

Question 13

Previous-year question
Which one of the following animals is correctly matched with its particular taxonomic category? [AIPMT 2011]
  1. Tiger — tigris, species
  2. Cuttlefish — Mollusca, class
  3. Humans — Primata, family
  4. Housefly — Musca, order
Show answer
Answer: (A) Tiger — tigris, species
Explanation: In Panthera tigris, tigris is indeed the specific epithet, i.e. the species. Cuttlefish belongs to the class Cephalopoda (Mollusca is a phylum), humans belong to the family Hominidae (Primata is an order), and Musca is a genus while the housefly's order is Diptera.

Question 14

Previous-year question
Tomato and potato will share the maximum number of common characteristics at the level of their [NEET 2016]
  1. family
  2. order
  3. division
  4. genus
Show answer
Answer: (D) genus
Explanation: Potato is Solanum tuberosum and tomato is Solanum lycopersicum; both belong to the same genus Solanum of the family Solanaceae. Since the number of shared characters increases as one moves down the hierarchy, the maximum resemblance between the two occurs at the level of genus.

Question 15

Previous-year question
Match Column I with Column II for the classification of the housefly and choose the correct option from the codes given below. [NEET-II 2016] Column I: (A) Family, (B) Order, (C) Class, (D) Phylum Column II: (i) Diptera, (ii) Arthropoda, (iii) Muscidae, (iv) Insecta
  1. A-(iii), B-(i), C-(iv), D-(ii)
  2. A-(iii), B-(ii), C-(iv), D-(i)
  3. A-(i), B-(iii), C-(ii), D-(iv)
  4. A-(iv), B-(ii), C-(i), D-(iii)
Show answer
Answer: (A) A-(iii), B-(i), C-(iv), D-(ii)
Explanation: The housefly is classified as Phylum Arthropoda, Class Insecta, Order Diptera and Family Muscidae. Hence Family matches Muscidae, Order matches Diptera, Class matches Insecta and Phylum matches Arthropoda.

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