Abstract
This chapter will argue that modern biologists, in spite of social pressures and historical precedents, need to replace the traditional two-kingdom animal-plant distinction, which has outlived its usefulness, with a multikingdom classification of living organisms. For reasons discussed below, based on recent discoveries from a variety of disciplines, it seems that Whittaker’s five-kingdom system (Whittaker, 1969) is the most logical and consistent yet devised. Whittaker’s system is expanded below the phylum level and slightly modified on the basis of cell evolutionary considerations; suggestions for its adoption by zoologists, botanists, and microbiologists are made.*
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Margulis, L. (1974). Five-Kingdom Classification and the Origin and Evolution of Cells. In: Dobzhansky, T., Hecht, M.K., Steere, W.C. (eds) Evolutionary Biology. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4615-6944-2_2
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4615-6944-2_2
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