Classes comprising animals like fishes, amphibians, reptiles, birds along with mammals constitute the next higher category called Phylum. All of these, are based on common features.

This category includes related orders. For example, order Primata comprising monkey, gorilla, and gibbon is placed in class Mammalia

Generally, order and other higher taxonomic categories are identified based on the aggregates of characters. Order being a higher category is the assemblage of families which exhibit a few similar characters.

Family has a group of related genera with still less number of similarities as compared to genus and species. Families are characterized on the basis of both vegetative and reproductive features of plant species.

Genus comprises a group of related species which has more characters in common in comparison to species of other genera. We can say that genera are aggregates of closely related species.

Taxonomic studies consider a group of individual organisms with fundamental similarities as a species. One should be able to distinguish one species from the other closely related species based on the distinct morphological differences.

Classification is not a single-step process but involves a hierarchy of steps in which each step represents a rank or category. Since the category is a part of the overall taxonomic arrangement, it is called the taxonomic category

If you look around you will see a large variety of living organisms, be it potted plants, insects, birds, your pets or other animals and plants. There are also several organisms that you cannot see with your naked eye but they are all around you. If you were to increase the area that you make observations in, the range and variety of organisms that you see would increase. Obviously, if you were to visit a dense forest, you would probably see a much greater number and kinds of living organisms in it. Each different kind of plant, animal or organism that you see, represents a species. The number of species that are known and described ranges from 1.7-1.8 million. This refers to biodiversity or the number and types of organisms present on earth. We should remember here that as we explore new areas, and even old ones, new organisms are continuously being identified.