Expert: Florence M Rollwagen - 7/13/2008

Question
wasps are multicellular consumers with complex organ systems. to what kingdom do they belong

Answer
Hi Crystal:  Thanks for your question.

Although this sounds like a homework problem to me, I’ll get you started on the right track so you can figure it out for yourself.

The classification of life falls into two major schools of thought.  There is the Five Kingdom Classification, and the Three Kingdom Classification.

The Five Kingdoms are:
1.  Kingdom Monera (bacteria)
2.  Kingdom Protista (microscopic Eukaryotes)
3.  Kingdom Fungi
4.  Kingdom Plantae
5.  Kingdom Animalia


The Three Kingdoms are:
1.  Kingdom Archaea (no nucleus, live in extreme conditions)
2.  Kingdom Bacteria
3.  Kingdom Eukaryota (true nucleus)

Complex animals have a true coelom (body cavity) and include earthworms, insects, and chordates.  When you consider complex animals, look at the organization of the skeleton, nerve cord and circulatory system.

Chordates (us, among others) have skeletons on the inside, nerve cord in the back (dorsal) and blood that stays inside blood vessels.

Arthropods (insects, among others) have skeletons on the outside, nerve cord in the front (ventral) and blood that sloshes around inside the body cavity (open circulation).

Here’s more information on animal classification:

http://waynesword.palomar.edu/trnov01.htm#animals
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kingdom_(biology)


I hope this answer has helped you.  Please write back if you have more questions.

FM Rollwagen, PhD