Let's take a look at how this all really works; you can follow along with the diagram. The domesticated cat is named Felis silvestris (remember Sylvester from the Warner Brothers cartoons?). Cats are animals, so they are in the Kingdom Animalia. They are chordate animals, meaning that they have a notochord as they develop, so they are in the Phylum Chordata. They are vertebrate animals, so they are in the Subphylum Vertebrata. They are mammals, so they are in the Class Mammalia. They are carnivorous, so they are in the Order Carnivora. Next is the Family Felidae, which is divided into the two Genera Felis (smaller cats like the domestic cat and the lynx) and Panthera (the big cats). The species tells us exactly what member of the Genus Felis we are talking about, Felis silvestris instead of Felis lynx.
You might compare this sorting to the way the Post Office sorts mail. First, you start with the country, then narrow things down further to state, then the city, the street, the particular building on that street, then the last name of the family, and, finally, the particular family member.
By grouping organisms this way, biologists can talk about a particular species, such as Felis silvestris, and all other biologists know exactly what they mean. They can also talk about larger groups, such as the Felids, the members of the Family Felidae, and everyone knows they mean both the big and small cats.
Paleontologists use this same way of grouping animals. We might talk about the Ceratopsians (the horned dinosaurs), animals that are in the Class Reptilia (reptiles), the Order Dinosauria (dinosaurs), and the Family Ceratopsia. We can then further divide them into different Genera and species, such as Triceratops horridus.
Knowing what organism you are talking about is always important, and how they are related is as well!
More Information about the Linnaean System
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