Question : A student of taxonomy was puzzled when told by his professor to look for a key to identify a plant. He went to his friend to clarify what 'Key' the professor was referring to ? What would the friend explain to him ?

Question : A student of taxonomy was puzzled when told by his professo

1.	Question : A student of taxonomy was puzzled when told by his professor to look for a key to identify a plant. He went to his friend to clarify what 'Key' the professor was referring to ? What would the friend explain to him ?
Answer» Solution :The key for identification of plants is a taxonomic key. It is an important taxonomic aid. A key is compared of two contrasting characters. The characters generally OCCUR in pairs and such a pair is called a coagulate. While studying a key either of contrasting character is rejected or ACCEPTED. Thus a choice is made between the two contrasting character in a key. Each statement in the key is called a lead. If is important to note that a key is usually analytical in nature. Moreover, separate keys need to be used for different taxonomic categories. Keys help in step by step identification of a particular organism. For example, presence or absence of notochord GIVES us a CLUE whether, the organism belongs to sub phylum Vertebrata or Invertebrata. Similarly presence or absence of lungs tell us if the organism belongs to group tetrapoda or pisces.