Living world
Taxonomic Aids
Taxonomists collect specimens from the field, preserve and store the same for later verification and reference.
Studies are carried out both in the field as well as inside the laboratory.
1. Monograph.
It is a book Or essay which gives comprehensive account of all the available information about a genus, family or higher category of grouping at the time of its publication.
It is a highly useful taxonomic aid.
2. Herbarium.
Herbaria are collections of dry, pressed and preserved plant specimens mounted on sheets.
Some plant parts are also kept in preservative liquids if they cannot be dried and pressed.
3. Botanical Gardens.
These specialized gardens have collections of living plants for reference.
Plant species in these gardens are grown for identification purposes and each plant is labelled indicating its botanical/scientific name and it's family.
The famous botanical Gardens are at Kew (England), Indian Botanical Garden, Howrah (India) and at National Botanical Research Institute, Lucknow (India).
4. Museum.
Biological specimens are generally set up in educational institutes such as schools and colleges.
Museums have collections of preserved plant and animal specimens for study and reference.
Plant and animal specimens may also be preserved as dry specimens.
Specimens are preserved in the containers or jars in preservative solutions.
Insects are preserved in insect boxes after collecting, killing and pinning.
Larger animals like birds and mammals are usually stuffed and preserved.
The largest museum in our country is Indian Museum at Kolkata.
5. Zoological Parks.
These are the places where wild animals are kept in protected environments under human care and which enable us to learn about their food habits and behaviour.
All animals in a zoo are provided, as far as possible, the conditions similar to their natural habitats.
Dr. A. KINGSLIN M.Sc, BEd, Phd
Post a Comment