View source for Wikipedia:WikiProject Tree of Life

{{short description|Wikimedia subject-area collaboration}}
{{WikiProject status|active|sc1=WP:TOL|sc2=WP:TREE |parent=Biology}}
<div style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; margin-bottom: 0.5em; ">{{Wikipedia:Version 1.0 Editorial Team/Taxonomic articles by quality statistics}}</div>
A few Wikipedians have come together to make some suggestions about how we might organize data in these articles.  These are ''only'' suggestions, things to give you focus and to get you going, and you ''shouldn't'' feel obligated in the least to follow them. But if you don't know what to write or where to begin, following the below guidelines may be helpful. Mainly, we just want you to write articles! For updates on Tree of Life and its subprojects, there is a monthly newletter published [[WP:TOLN|here]] to which you can subscribe.

== Scope and related projects ==
This [[wikipedia:WikiProject|WikiProject]] is both a daughter project of [[wikipedia:WikiProject Biology|WikiProject Biology]] and a meta-project in its own right. WikiProject Tree of Life aims primarily to represent the taxonomy and relationships of living organisms, as well as their extinct relatives, in a tree structure.  Since there are millions of species, not all will be included, but we aim to handle as many as information, time, and interest permit. However, as a meta-project, Tree of Life directly includes only articles which have meaning across taxa or which pertain to taxonomy and systematics in general, or which do not fall under one of our daughter WikiProjects. A full directory of daughter WikiProjects has been listed below in the form of a [[cladogram]]. To see a directory of our sister WikiProjects under WikiProject Biology, see [[Wikipedia:WikiProject Biology#Related WikiProjects|this link]].

To see activity levels and active editors for these projects, use the [[Wikipedia:WikiProject Directory/Science, technology, and engineering WikiProjects#Biology WikiProjects|Wikiproject Directory tool]] and find the project in question for further information. Some projects may not be listed. Current labels are based solely on template tags at the top of WikiProject pages and do not represent an in-depth assessment of the activity level of any project by WikiProject Tree of Life.

{{clade
|label1=[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Tree of Life|WikiProject Tree of Life]]
|1={{clade
|label1=[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Animals|WikiProject Animals]]
|1={{clade
|label1=[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Arthropods|WikiProject Arthropods]]
|1={{clade
|label1=[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Insects|WikiProject Insects]]
|1={{clade
|1=[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Insects/ant task force|Ant task force]]
|2=[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Beetles|WikiProject Beetles]]
|3=[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Diptera|WikiProject Diptera]]
|4=[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Insects/Hymenoptera task force|Hymenoptera task force]]
|5=[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Lepidoptera|WikiProject Lepidoptera]]
|6=[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Mantodea|WikiProject Mantodea]] (semi-active)
|7=[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Phasmatodea|WikiProject Phasmatodea]] (inactive)
}}
|2=[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Spiders|WikiProject Spiders]]
}}
|label2=Mollusca ([[Mollusca|article]])
|2={{clade
|1=[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Bivalves|WikiProject Bivalves]]
|2=[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Cephalopods|WikiProject Cephalopods]]
|3=[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Gastropods|WikiProject Gastropods]]
}}
|label3=Vertebrata ([[Vertebrate|article]])
|3={{clade
|label1=[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Fishes|WikiProject Fishes]]
|1={{clade
|1=[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Aquarium Fishes|WikiProject Aquarium Fishes]]
|2=[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Fisheries and Fishing|WikiProject Fisheries and Fishing]]
|3=[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Palaeontology/Lobe-Fins|Lobe-Fin task force]] (shared with WP:Palaeontology)
|4=[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Sharks|WikiProject Sharks]]
}}
|label2=[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Amphibians and Reptiles|WikiProject Amphibians and Reptiles]]
|2={{clade
|label1=[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Dinosaurs|WikiProject Dinosaurs]]
|1={{clade
|1=[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Dinosaurs/Ankylosauria Task Force|Ankylosauria Task Force]]
}}
|2=[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Palaeontology/Pterosaurs task force|Pterosaurs task force]] (shared with WP:Palaeontology)
|3=[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Turtles|WikiProject Turtles]] (semi-active)
}}
|label3=[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Birds|WikiProject Birds]]
|3={{clade
|1=[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Poultry|WikiProject Poultry]] (inactive)
|2=[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Birds/Domestic pigeon task force|Domestic Pigeon task force]] (defunct)
}}
|label4=[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Mammals|WikiProject Mammals]]
|4={{clade
|1=[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Mammals/Bats Task Force|Bats task force]]
|2=[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Cats|WikiProject Cats]]
|3=[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Cetaceans|WikiProject Cetaceans]] (semi-active)
|label4=[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Dogs|WikiProject Dogs]] |sublabel4=(semi-active)
|4={{clade
|1=[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Dogs/Dog breeds task force|Dog breeds task force]] (inactive)
}}
|label5=[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Equine|WikiProject Equine]]
|5={{clade
|1=[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Equine/Horse breeds|Horse breeds task force]] (Defunct)(shared with WP:AG)
|2=[[Wikipedia talk:WikiProject Equine/Horse training|Horse training task force]] (Inactive)
}}
|6=[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Monotremes and Marsupials|WikiProject Monotremes and Marsupials]] (defunct)
|7=[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Mammals/Mustelids work group|Mustelids work group]] (inactive)
|8=[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Mammals/Pocket pets work group|Pocket pets work group]] (inactive)
|9=[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Primates|WikiProject Primates]]
|10=[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Rodents|WikiProject Rodents]] (semi-active)

}}
}}
}}
|label2=[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Plants|WikiProject Plants]]
|2={{clade
|1=[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Aquatic plants|WikiProject Aquatic plants]] (completely inactive)
|2=[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Banksia|WikiProject Banksia]] (inactive)
|3=[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Cannabis|WikiProject Cannabis]]
|4=[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Carnivorous plants|WikiProject Carnivorous plants]] (inactive)
|5=[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Horticulture and Gardening|WikiProject Horticulture and Gardening]]
|6=[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Hypericaceae|WikiProject Hypericaceae]]
|7=[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Medicinal botany|WikiProject Medicinal botany]] (defunct)
|8=[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Pteridophytes|WikiProject Pteridophytes]] (inactive)
}}
|label3=[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Microbiology|WikiProject Microbiology]]
|3={{clade
|label1=[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Viruses|WikiProject Viruses]]
|1={{clade
|1=[[Wikipedia:WikiProject AIDS|WikiProject AIDS]]
|2=[[Wikipedia:WikiProject COVID-19|WikiProject COVID-19]]
}}
 }}
|4=[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Algae|WikiProject Algae]]
|5=[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Australian biota|WikiProject Australian biota]]
|6=[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Biota of Great Britain and Ireland|WikiProject Biota of Great Britain and Ireland]] (inactive)
|label7=[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Fungi|WikiProject Fungi]]
|7={{clade
|1=[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Fungi/Lichen task force|Lichen task force]]
}}
|8=[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Japan/Flora and fauna task force]] (inactive)
|9=[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Marine life|WikiProject Marine life]]
|10=[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Tree of Life/Taxobox task force|ToL Taxobox task force]]
|label11=[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Palaeontology|WikiProject Palaeontology]]
|11={{clade
|1=[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Palaeontology/Lobe-Fins|Lobe-Fin task force]] (shared with WP:Fishes)
|2=[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Palaeontology/Pterosaurs task force|Pterosaurs task force]] (shared with WP:Amphibians and Reptiles)
}}
|12=[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Protista|WikiProject Protista]] 
}}
}}
===Other projects outside of Tree of Life===
* [[Wikipedia:WikiProject Agriculture|WikiProject Agriculture]]
**[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Agriculture/Livestock task force|Livestock task force]]
* [[Wikipedia:WikiProject Animal anatomy|WikiProject Animal anatomy]]
* [[Wikipedia:WikiProject Animals in media|WikiProject Animals in media]]
* [[Wikipedia:WikiProject Animal rights|WikiProject Animal rights]]
* [[Wikipedia:WikiProject Veterinary medicine|WikiProject Veterinary medicine]]

==Article alerts==
{{/Article alerts}}

==Article titles==
{{Main|Wikipedia:Article titles|Wikipedia:Manual of Style#Animals, plants, and other organisms}}

In cases where there is a formal common name (e.g. for birds), or when common names are well known and reasonably unique (e.g. "Cuvier's dwarf caiman"), they should be used for article titles. In all other cases, scientific names should be used.  

See [[Wikipedia:Naming conventions (flora)]] for article titles for plants and [[Wikipedia:Naming conventions (fauna)]] for article titles for animals.

Note the following guidelines in using scientific names:
* Names of genera are always italicized and capitalized, e.g. ''Homo'', ''Rosa'', ''Saccharomyces''.
* [[Species]] epithets are always italicized and preceded by the name of the genus, either in full or abbreviated (e.g. ''Homo sapiens'' or ''H. sapiens''; never just ''sapiens''), as an epithet may also be used for a different species in another genus. They are never capitalized. 
* Names of higher taxa are capitalized but not italicized, e.g. Hominidae, Mammalia, Animalia.
* Common (vernacular) names are not capitalised (except for proper names that are part of them). See [[Wikipedia:Manual of Style#Animals, plants, and other organisms]].

For a [[monotypic taxon]] (one that contains only one immediately subordinate taxon), a single article should cover both taxa (unless the higher-ranked one has had multiple [[Circumscription (taxonomy)|circumscriptions]], and an article is written to cover them all).  If there is no common name, the article should generally go under the scientific name that is most often used when discussing the two taxa, or under the scientific name of lowest rank if there is no clear preference.  However, for a monotypic genus (one that contains a single species), the genus name should be used, as it is included in the [[binomial nomenclature]], and the genus title is [[WP:CONCISE|more concise]] than the binomial.  For instance, the order Amphionidacea, which has the single species ''Amphionides reynaudii'', is discussed at ''[[Amphionides]]''. If the name of a monotypic genus is shared with another topic, it is usually more appropriate to use a binomial as a [[WP:NATURALDIS|natural disambiguation]], rather than using a parenthetical disambiguating term for the genus. E.g., ''[[Alberta magna]]'' is a more natural search term than [[Alberta (plant)|''Alberta'' (plant)]].

Not all species need have separate articles. The simplest (and probably best) rule is to have ''no'' rule: if you have the time and energy to write up some particularly obscure subspecies that most people have never even heard of, go for it!  As a general guideline, though, it's best to combine separate species into a single entry whenever it seems likely that there won't be enough text to make more than a short, unsatisfying stub otherwise. If the entry grows large enough to deserve splitting, that can always be done later.

A useful heuristic is to create articles in a "downwards" order, that is, family articles first, then genus, then species.  If you find that information is getting thin, or the family/genus is small, leave the species information in the family or genus article. Don't try to force it down any further.

==Taxon article template==
{{Main|Wikipedia:WikiProject Tree of Life/Taxon template}}
Articles about taxa, such as families, genera, or species, typically contain some or all of these sections:
*(Physical) Description
*Taxonomy
*Distribution and habitat
*Ecology and behavior
*Conservation
*Uses
*Culture

See the general [[Wikipedia:WikiProject Tree of Life/Taxon template|taxon template]] and descendant project pages, such as the [[Wikipedia:WikiProject_Plants/Template|WikiProject Plants taxon template]], for more detail specific to different groups.

==Taxoboxes==
{{Automatic taxobox
| name = Example taxobox<br/>Cetaceans
| fossil_range = {{Fossil range|53.5|0|earliest=|latest=|PS=}}Early [[Eocene]]&nbsp;– Present
| image = The Cetacea.jpg
| image_upright = 1.4
| image_caption = Clockwise from top: [[sperm whale]] (''Physeter macrocephalus''), [[Amazon river dolphin]] (''Inia geoffrensis''), [[Blainville's beaked whale]] (''Mesoplodon densirostris''), [[southern right whale]] (''Eubalaena australis''), [[narwhal]] (''Monodon monoceros''), [[humpback whale]] (''Megaptera novaeangliae''), [[killer whale]] (''Orcinus orca''), [[gray whale]] (''Eschrichtius robustus'') and [[harbor porpoise]] (''Phocoena phocoena'').
| taxon = Cetacea
| authority = [[Mathurin Jacques Brisson|Brisson]], 1762
| subdivision_ranks = [[Parvorder]]s
| subdivision =
*[[Mysticeti]]
*[[Odontoceti]]
*{{Extinct}}[[Archaeoceti]]
''([[Cetacea#Classification|see text]] for families)''
| diversity = Around 88 species
| diversity_link = List of cetaceans
}}
:The full taxobox guide is located at '''[[Wikipedia:Automated taxobox system/intro]]'''.

Detailed taxonomic information, including notes on how [[Taxon|taxa]] are defined and how they vary between different systems, belongs in the article proper.  Where possible, however, a standard table will be provided to allow easier navigation between related groups and quick identification of what sort of organisms are being discussed.  These are called taxoboxes.  A typical taxobox is shown at right (it belongs on the top right of the page [[Cetacea]]).

There are three main sections to the taxobox:
*A header showing the name of the group, sometimes followed by a representative image.
*A table showing the placement of the group in a typical classification system.
*A footer, whose content varies, showing the binomial name or a species, or a list of subgroups for higher taxa.

Some items that are often included, but are not (necessarily) standardized, include:
*Breeding organizations' classifications ([[Dingo]])
*[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Maps/Conventions/Area maps|Range map]] (see, for example, [[Orca]])
*Synonyms ([[European lobster]])

Position: The taxobox generally belongs at the top right corner of the article, unless it has been decided otherwise on the relevant talk page - for instance, if the article is not primarily about the biological group.

For [[cultivar]]s — cultivated varieties of plants — don't use a taxobox; instead use a '''cultivar infobox''' ({{tl|Infobox cultivar}}) as described at '''[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Tree of Life/Cultivar infobox]]'''.

For breeds of animals, don't use a taxobox; instead use the appropriate breed template; see for example [[Wikipedia:WikiProject Dogs/Dog breeds task force]] and [[Wikipedia:WikiProject Equine/Horse breeds]].

===Talkpages===
Tag talkpages with: {{tlx|WikiProject Tree of Life|class{{=}}|importance{{=}}}}

==Categories==
Major groups should be given their own categories. When possible, these should use the common name in the plural, except for plants, where [[Wikipedia:WikiProject Plants|WikiProject Plants]] uses scientific names by default (see [[WP:NCFLORA]]). In general, only articles about major subgroups should be added, and more specific articles should be included in subcategories. However, when there are only a few articles about members of the group, they can all go directly into the main category. Use your judgement on when to split, aiming for an approximate category size of 10-50 articles.

Note that in addition to taxa, categories may also contain informal subgroups. For instance [[:Category:Primates]] may include an article or subcategory for monkeys, although they are not treated as a formal group. They may also include some other articles that pertain specifically to members of the group, although they are not about them.

Categories for articles about the [[Biota (taxonomy)|biota]]<ref>Biota are the total collection of organisms of a geographic region or a time period. See: [[Biota (ecology)]]</ref> of a region should be based on the common grouping of that region used by zoological, botanical, mycological etc. publications. For example, if it is common to separate a region based on political boundaries (as in parts of Europe), categories should be separated by countries. If it is common to separate regions based on geographic features (such as [[New Guinea]]), categories should be separated by geographic region.

===References===
<references />

==Taxonomic resources==
The taxonomy of many groups is in a state of flux as taxonomic experts strive to incorporate the findings of [[Molecular phylogenetics]], so it is not always possible to find a single satisfactory classification, and we would be doing a great disservice by pretending otherwise.  The best would be to try and find out what the current consensus is, if there is one, and make notes on variant systems.  In this, the following resources may be helpful:

===General taxonomy===
*[http://www.catalogueoflife.org Catalogue of Life] - The Catalogue of Life is the most comprehensive and authoritative global index of species currently available. It consists of a single integrated species checklist and taxonomic hierarchy. The Catalogue holds essential information on the names, relationships and distributions of over 1.7 million species. This figure continues to rise as information is compiled from diverse sources around the world. Results are explicit about their primary sources but may trail behind primary databases such as [[World Register of Marine Species]].
*[http://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0119248 M. A. Ruggiero et al.: A Higher Level Classification of All Living Organisms] PLOS One, 2015; also a few corrections [http://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0130114 here]. A Classification of all life down to the level of order, to be implemented through the Catalogue of Life. Families are not included, although they can be found at this 2014 version [https://web.archive.org/web/20150923165531/http://ggi.eol.org/ggi_family_data.xlsx here] (as an excel spreadsheet, some orders etc. changed for the 2015 version)
*[http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/Taxonomy/ NCBI database] − The Taxonomy Database is a curated classification and nomenclature for all of the organisms in the public sequence databases. This currently represents about 10% of the described species of life on the planet. It attempts to incorporate phylogenetic and taxonomic knowledge from a variety of sources.
*[http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/exhibits/historyoflife.php UC Berkeley: History of life through time] − phylogenetic cladograms; many well-summarized groups with illustrations; many pages "under construction"; links to other useful sites
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20010709190326/http://www.fmnh.helsinki.fi/users/haaramo/ Mikko's Phylogeny Archive] - A private archive of various phylogenetic trees. 
*[http://www.organismnames.com/ Index to Organism Names] - Clarivate Analytics (formerly Thomson Reuters, formerly Biosis) - zoological names only, taxonomic hierarchy is useful a starting point but not necessarily up-to-date or complete.
*The [http://www.irmng.org/ Interim Register of Marine and Nonmarine Genera (IRMNG)] - A comprehensive source (at least to c.2012) for genus names and their authorities for "all life", taxonomy is fairly up-to-date in some portions (higher plants, algae, fungi), variable in others; not all genera yet allocated to families.
*[[Paleobiology Database]] [https://paleobiodb.org/#/]: taxonomic and distributional information about the fossil record of plants and animals, complete for many well-known taxa, less so for others.
*[http://sn2000.taxonomy.nl/ Systema naturae] − usually gives multiple breakdowns for groups, which is sometimes confusing but can be very useful.
*[http://www.itis.gov/ www.itis.gov] − now part of [http://www.catalogueoflife.org Catalogue of Life] an automated reference database of scientific and common names for species built within a working hierarchy.  ITIS partners with Species 2000 to build the Catalogue of Life. Covers a lot of ground, but is often incomplete or idiosyncratic. ITIS pages older than a few years or with no review date should not be used, and in general ITIS cannot be considered a [[WP:RS|reliable source]] on its own. (Note domain used to be ''www.itis.'''usda'''.gov'' .  Deleting the ''usda'' component ''may'' restore the link.
*[http://www.sp2000.org/ Species 2000] − now part of [http://www.catalogueoflife.org Catalogue of Life] a list of specific taxonomic (current) databases, covering contemporary and fossil organisms.
*[http://www.biologie.uni-ulm.de/systax Systax] - a database system for systematics and taxometry based at the [[University of Ulm]], Germany, which can be used as an alternative to the Itis system listed above.{{Dead link|date=August 2023}}
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20080804070303/http://www.insecta.bio.pu.ru/z/zoo-name.htm#I.3.4 Kluge] Principles of taxonomy
*[http://www.globalnames.org/ Global Names Index] - A repository of ~18 million names (species, genus + alternate names and attributions from author) from a [http://www.globalnames.org/data_sources multitude of source].

===Marine organisms===
* [[World Register of Marine Species]] [https://www.marinespecies.org/] - an authoritative searchable database of marine organisms, from vertebrates to viruses. The taxonomic editors for each section are the experts in their group of organisms.

===Animals===

*[http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/ Animal Diversity Web] from the [[University of Michigan]] - Very informative
*[http://www.funet.fi/pub/sci/bio/life/intro.html Lepidoptera] and other species (mostly related to Lepidoptera, such as popular butterfly plants, etc.).  Info collected from other sources, not sure how accurate it all is.  Interesting note: he has a (open source) perl script generating range maps automatically from distribution text.
*[http://www.bugguide.net/ BugGuide.net]--extensive resource on taxonomy and identification of North American arthropods. Experts in many fields visit and help with taxonomy.
*[http://diptera.info/news.php Diptera.info]--extensive resource on taxonomy and identification of Diptera. Experts members help with taxonomy
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20090317070142/http://www.forum.hymis.de/index.php Hymis forum]--extensive resource on taxonomy and identification of Hymenoptera. Experts members help with taxonomy
*[http://www.faunaeur.org/ Fauna Europaea] - Database of all European land and freshwater animals.

;Amphibians and Reptiles
*[http://research.amnh.org/herpetology/amphibia/index.php '''AMNH database'''] - Preferred taxonomy used by [[Wikipedia:WikiProject Amphibians and Reptiles|WikiProject Amphibians and Reptiles]].
*[http://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=173747 '''ITIS, Reptilia'''] - Preferred taxonomy used by [[Wikipedia:WikiProject Amphibians and Reptiles|WikiProject Amphibians and Reptiles]].

;Birds
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20030801103129/http://www.bsc-eoc.org/avibase/avibase.jsp Avibase] - Database including all the world's bird species.
*[http://www.worldbirdnames.org/ IOC World Bird List] - Preferred source of vernacular names and taxonomy used by [[Wikipedia:WikiProject Birds|WikiProject Birds]]

;Brachiopods
*Emig C. C., Bitner M. A. & Álvarez F., 2019. [http://paleopolis.rediris.es/brachiopoda_database/ Brachiopoda Database].

;Fish
*[http://www.fishbase.org/search.html?server=IFM-Kiel '''FishBase'''] - Huge database giving basic info on thousands of fish. Preferred taxonomy used by [[Wikipedia:WikiProject Fishes|WikiProject Fishes]].

;Mammals
*[http://www.bucknell.edu/msw3/ '''Mammal Species of the World, 3rd edition (MSW3)'''] - Database of mammalian taxonomy. Preferred taxonomy used by [[Wikipedia:WikiProject Mammals|WikiProject Mammals]].
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20120716204643/http://home.arcor.de/ktdykes/meseucaz.htm '''Mesozoic mammals'''] - Containing much information about Mesozoic mammals and relatives.

;Molluscs

*'''Gastropods (Mollusca)'''. For all marine species, [[Wikipedia:WikiProject_Gastropods|Wikiproject Gastropods]] uses the taxonomy curated by MolluscaBase and also viewed on WoRMS. This system is based on the 2017 "Revised Classification, Nomenclator and Typification of Gastropod and Monoplacophoran Families" by Philippe Bouchet & Jean-Pierre Rocroi, Bernhard Hausdorf, Andrzej Kaim, Yasunori Kano, Alexander Nützel, Pavel Parkhaev, Michael Schrödl and Ellen E. Strong in Malacologia, 2017, 61(1–2): 1–526.  

*'''Bivalves (Mollusca)'''. [[Wikipedia:WikiProject_Bivalves|Wikiproject Bivalves]] is using the taxonomy of Bieler, R., Carter, J.G. & Coan, E.V. (2010) ''Classification of Bivalve families''. Pp. 113-133, in: Bouchet, P. & Rocroi, J.P. (2010), "Nomenclator of Bivalve Families with a Classification of Bivalve Families" Malacologia 52(2): 1-184, which can be found at: [http://www.bioone.org/doi/abs/10.4002/040.052.0201 Philippe Bouchet & Jean-Pierre Rocroi, Rüdiger Bieler, Joseph G. Carter, & Eugene V. Coan. 2010: Nomenclator of bivalve families with a classification of bivalve families. Malacologia 52: 4-112].

*'''Cephalopods (Mollusca)'''. [http://www.cephbase.utmb.edu/ '''CephBase'''] - Superb information about Cephalopod classification. Preferred taxonomy used by [[Wikipedia:WikiProject Cephalopods|WikiProject Cephalopods]].{{Dead link|date=August 2023}}

*'''[[Solenogastres]] (Mollusca)'''. WP's taxonomy currently uses {{Solenogastres taxonomy}}

;Platyhelminths (Turbellaria)
{{Cite journal | last1 = Baguñà | first1 = J. | last2 = Riutort | first2 = M. | doi = 10.1139/z03-214 | title = Molecular phylogeny of the Platyhelminthes | journal = Canadian Journal of Zoology | volume = 82 | issue = 2 | pages = 168 | year = 2004 | pmid = | pmc = }}, reflected in {{cite web|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060912094821/http://turbellaria.umaine.edu/turb2.php?action=1&code=12276|title = Turbellarian taxonomic database}}

;Arthropods
*Spiders - [http://www.wsc.nmbe.ch/ World Spider Catalog] - Preferred taxonomy used by [[Wikipedia:WikiProject Spiders|WikiProject Spiders]]
*[[Centipedes]] - [https://chilobase.biologia.unipd.it/ Chilobase 2.0]
*Scorpions - [https://www.ntnu.no/ub/scorpion-files/index.php The Scorpion Files]
*Arthropods - [http://arthropoda.speciesfile.org/Common/basic/Taxa.aspx?TaxonNameID=1171202 Arthropoda Species File] - includes Mantodea Species File (MSF) and others

===Plants===
*[[Angiosperm Phylogeny Group]] (2016). An update of the Angiosperm Phylogeny Group classification for the orders and families of flowering plants: APG IV.  ''Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society, 181'', 1-20. available here: [https://academic.oup.com/botlinnean/article/181/1/1/2416499 Available online]. The current authoritative source for flowering plants at family level and above, updated from APG I/II/III.
*[http://www.mobot.org/MOBOT/research/APweb/ Angiosperm Phylogeny Website] : incorporates the latest taxonomic research; continuously updated.
*[http://herbarium.usu.edu/treatments/accepted_names_and_synonyms.htm Accepted names and synonyms of taxa from volume 24 of the ''Flora of North America'' (Poaceae and relatives)]
*The [http://www.tropicos.org/namesearch.aspx Missouri Botanical Garden] is searchable by species, and where this is available, will give the accepted classification, and the degree to which it is accepted. Also lists authors, synonyms and homonyms. Far from complete.
*[http://www.botany.hawaii.edu/faculty/carr/pfamilies.htm Vascular Plant Families] - a systematic and alphabetical index of the non-flowering and the flowering plant families with the Cronquist system and the phylogenetic system of Judd et al. (2002) (i.e. APG)
*[http://plants.usda.gov/index.html USDA/NRCS PLANTS Database] - Not complete, but nice.  Resource for some PD images. Common names used are usually only common  in the USA and may not be used worldwide. 
*[http://delta-intkey.com/angio/ L. Watson and M.J. Dallwitz (1992 onwards). The families of flowering plants: descriptions, illustrations, identification, information retrieval.] http://delta-intkey.com - Unique resource, updated to about 1998 (note that especially the lists of  genera are outdated) - includes classifications of Cronquist; Dahlgren; Dahlgren, Clifford and Yeo; and APG (i.e. APG I, of 1998)
*[https://phytomorphology.org/personal-information/system-of-embryophytes/ System of Embryophytes] by A. Novikoff & B. Barabasz-Krasny, 2015. A good modern treatment of fossil and extant plants (angiosperms excepted), particularly useful for fossil genera and families (with a small number of errors and some omissions). Not completely congruent with the treatment of modern plant divisions by Ruggiero et al, 2015 as given above; a version of Novikoff & Barabasz-Krasny's "System" with modifications for compliance with the latter treatment is included in IRMNG, the Interim Register of Marine and Nonmarine Genera, see listing above in "General Taxonomy".
*[http://www.conifers.org/ Gymnosperm Database] - very good coverage of gymnosperms
*[https://archive.vn/sJkz HortiPlex Plant Database] - Searchable by common or scientific name. Submitted by gardeners- may not be in line with current taxonomy.
*[http://www.ildis.org/LegumeWeb/ ILDIS] A database of legume taxonomy, includes synonyms and accepted names, common names and detailed bibliographies for many species. 
:Likewise, the following sites can help find taxonomic authors and abbreviations:
*[[IPNI]], [https://web.archive.org/web/20020207235317/http://www.ipni.org/ipni/query_author.html authors search]  Note that the author database is separate from the plant name databases: the author database is authoritative. The plant name databases are "as is" and should be used as a search aid (invaluable as such) rather than as any kind of authority.

===Fungi===
*[http://www.indexfungorum.org Index Fungorum] - database of fungus species, genus and higher names, with all historical synonyms and indication of current name
*[http://www.mycobank.org MycoBank] - nomenclatural and taxonomical database, similar in purpose and coverage to Index Fungorum
*[http://www.itis.gov ITIS], which covers other kingdoms as well

===Protists and prokaryotes===
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20020225165926/http://www-sp2000ao.nies.go.jp/english/bios/index.html BIOS] database of bacteria, archea and cyanobacteria names, with bibliography.
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20000816004026/http://www.bacterio.cict.fr/ List of Bacterial names with Standing in Nomenclature] - Bacteria have a formal approved nomenclature, all approved names can be found here.
*[http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/bv.fcgi?rid=bacname.chapter.39 List of Approved Bacterial Names] - list provided by the American Society for Microbiology.
*[http://www.algaebase.org AlgaeBase] - database of algae species, very large but not complete

===Viruses===
*[[International Committee on Taxonomy of Viruses]] (ICTV) [https://talk.ictvonline.org/taxonomy/] - the ''de facto'' standard for Wikipedia virus articles to method.  A good place to see this in action and get an idea of how it works can be found at [[Virus classification]].
*[[Medical Subject Headings]] (MeSH) database ([http://www.nlm.nih.gov/mesh/MBrowser.html]) also is a useful resource for virus taxonomy.

==Requests==
===Taxa===
[[Wikipedia:Requested_articles/Natural_sciences/Biology#Tree_of_life |List of requested taxa]] 

===Photographs===
If you wish to have a photo uploaded please add <nowiki>{{Image requested|animals}}</nowiki> on the talk page of the article. [[:Category:Wikipedia requested photographs of animals]] lists these requests - if you can upload a photograph of any of these it would be appreciated.

===Cladograms===
If you would like for a cladogram to be created for an article visit [[Wikipedia:WikiProject Tree of Life/Cladogram requests]].

==Related WikiProjects== 
*[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Animal rights|WikiProject Animal rights]]
*[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Evolutionary biology|WikiProject Evolutionary biology]]
*[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Ecoregions|WikiProject Ecoregions]]
*[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Forestry|WikiProject Forestry]]
*[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Wiki Makes Video/Parks]]
*[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Wiki Makes Video/Wildlife]]
*[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Missing  encyclopedic articles/Global Names Index]]
*[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Paleontology]]

===On other Wikimedia Foundation projects===
*[[d:Wikidata:WikiProject Taxonomy|WikiProject Taxonomy]] on Wikidata (add yourself to [[d:Wikidata:WikiProject Taxonomy/Participants|this list]] to be notified of relevant Wikidata activity)
*[[c:Commons:WikiProject Tree of Life|WikiProject Tree of Life]] on Wikimedia Commons
*[[species:Main Page|Wikispecies]] for scientific users ([[m:Wikispecies/FAQ|FAQ]])

==[[Image:Nuvola apps kdmconfig.png|25px|2 people]] Participants==
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=== Userboxes ===
The following [[WP:Userboxes|userboxes]] are available to add to your user page:
{{User WP/subex|User WP TOL|list}}

== Sample articles == 
A number of articles under this WikiProject and its descendants have been recognized for their excellence by the Wikipedia community as [[Wikipedia:Featured articles|featured articles]] or [[Wikipedia:Featured lists|featured lists]], and may serve as good models. The articles are sorted by WikiProject:
*'''General''': [[Archaea]], [[Bacteria]], [[Ediacaran biota]], ''[[Helicobacter pylori]]'', ''[[Myxobolus cerebralis]]'', [[Starfish]]
*'''[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Amphibians and Reptiles|Amphibians and Reptiles]]''': [[Australian green tree frog]], [[Cane toad]], [[Crocodilia]], [[Frog]], [[Green and golden bell frog]], [[Hawksbill sea turtle]], [[List of snakes of Trinidad and Tobago]], [[List of Testudines families]]
*'''[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Arthropods|Arthropods]]''': [[Isopoda]], ''[[Jaekelopterus]]'', ''[[Megarachne]]'', [[Millipede]], ''[[Onychopterella]]''
**'''[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Insects|Insects]]''': ''[[Aleeta curvicosta]]'', [[Ant]], [[Horse-fly]], [[List of Odonata species of Great Britain]], [[List of ant subfamilies]], [[Mayfly]]
**'''[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Spiders|Spiders]]''': [[Redback spider]]
*'''[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Birds|Birds]]''': [[Albatross]], [[American goldfinch]], [[Arctic tern]], [[Bald eagle]], [[California condor]], [[Common raven]], [[Elfin woods warbler]], [[Emu]], [[Kakapo]], [[List of birds of Florida]], [[List of birds of Kansas]], [[List of birds of Nicaragua]], [[List of birds of Thailand]], [[Mourning dove]], [[Procellariidae]], [[Red-tailed black cockatoo]], [[Seabird]] 
*'''[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Dinosaurs|Dinosaurs]]''': ''[[Albertosaurus]]'', ''[[Archaeopteryx]]'', ''[[Compsognathus]]'', ''[[Diplodocus]]'', [[Dinosaur]], ''[[Iguanodon]]'', [[List of dinosaur genera]], ''[[Psittacosaurus]]'', ''[[Stegosaurus]]'', ''[[Styracosaurus]]'', ''[[Triceratops]]'', ''[[Tyrannosaurus]]'', ''[[Velociraptor]]''
*'''[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Fungi|Fungi]]''': ''[[Amanita muscaria]]'', ''[[Amanita ocreata]]'', ''[[Amanita phalloides]]'', ''[[Cyathus]]'', ''[[Gyromitra esculenta]]'', [[List of Armillaria species|List of ''Armillaria'' species]]
*'''[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Mammals|Mammals]]''': [[Elephant]], [[European hare]], [[Giraffe]], [[List of fruit bats]], [[List of mammals of Florida]], [[List of mammals of Korea]]
**'''[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Cats|Cats]]''': [[Bobcat]], [[Cougar]], [[Jaguar]], [[Lion]], [[List of felids]], ''[[Smilodon]]''
**'''[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Cetaceans|Cetaceans]]''': [[Baleen whale]], [[Blue whale]], [[Fin whale]], [[Humpback whale]], [[Killer whale]], [[Right whale]], [[Sei whale]], [[List of cetacean species]]
**'''[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Dogs|Dogs]]''': [[Beringian wolf]], [[Dire wolf]], [[Golden jackal]], [[List of canids]]
**'''[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Monotremes and Marsupials|Monotremes and Marsupials]]''': [[Platypus]], [[Short-beaked echidna]], [[Tasmanian devil]], [[Thylacine]]
**'''[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Primates|Primates]]''': [[Lemur]], [[List of lemur species]], [[The World's 25 Most Endangered Primates]], [[Primate]], [[Ring-tailed lemur]], [[Slow loris]]
*'''[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Plants|Plants]]''': ''[[Cucurbita]]'', ''[[Ficus macrophylla]]'', ''[[Lambertia formosa]]'', [[List of basil cultivars]], [[List of the largest genera of flowering plants]], ''[[Verbascum thapsus]]''
**'''''[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Banksia|Banksia]]''''': ''[[Banksia attenuata|B.&nbsp;attenuata]]'', ''[[Banksia brownii|B.&nbsp;brownii]]'', ''[[Banksia epica|B.&nbsp;epica]]'', ''[[Banksia ericifolia|B.&nbsp;ericifolia]]'', ''[[Banksia integrifolia|B.&nbsp;integrifolia]]'', ''[[Banksia serrata|B.&nbsp;serrata]]''
**'''[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Carnivorous plants|Carnivorous plants]]''': ''[[Drosera regia]]'', ''[[Pinguicula moranensis]]''
*'''[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Sharks|Sharks]]''': ''[[Cretoxyrhina]]'', [[Goblin shark]], [[Megalodon]], [[Oceanic whitetip shark]], [[Pigeye shark]], [[Porbeagle]], [[Silky shark]]

==To do==
===New articles===
To browse Tree of Life subjects that require articles, see the [[Wikipedia:Requested_articles/Natural_sciences/Biology#Tree_of_life|Tree of Life list of requested articles]]. If adding to the list of requests, make sure to include scientific names, as it will make it easier for others to track down information. One-sentence stubs are discouraged: try to create a worthwhile start class article, with a taxobox, and [[Wikipedia:Citing sources|sources properly cited]]. When adding weblinks, look for standard references first, such as the [[IUCN]] and its sub-commissions.

Specific request lists also include:
* '''Missing encyclopedic articles about ''' [[User:Skysmith/Missing topics about Animals|animals]].
* '''Missing encyclopedic articles about ''' [[Wikipedia:WikiProject Missing encyclopedic articles/Hotlist of Plants|plants]]
* Requested articles about [[Wikipedia:WikiProject Plants/Article requests|plants (botany)]]
* '''Fact-check new biology articles''' nominated for "Did you know ...?" [[T:TDYK|here]].  The link is to all nominated articles, but binomial species names are easy to pick out. Successful candidates will be linked to from our Main Page, so let's make them look good!

===Cleanup===
Please add {{tl|missing-taxobox}} to the ''talk page'' of articles that need taxonomic information.

'''Articles needing taxoboxes'''
* [[:Category:Missing taxobox|Missing taxobox]]

===Articles needing attention===
* [[Wikipedia:Pages needing attention/Biology|Biology pages needing attention]] (cleanup, expansion, wikification, expert needed, etc.)

'''Articles needing attention'''
* [[Wikipedia:WikiProject Tree of Life/Articles without images]]
* [[:Category:Taxonomic articles needing attention]]
* [[:Category:Plant articles needing attention|Plant articles needing attention]]
* [[:Category:Plants articles needing expert attention|Plant articles needing expert attention]]
* [[:Category:Wikipedia requested images of plants|Wikipedia requested images of plants]]
* [[Commons:Category:Unidentified plants|Unidentified plant images]] - Unidentified plants on Commons

===Assessment===
[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Tree of Life/Assessment]]

===Popular pages===

'''[[Wikipedia:WikiProject Tree of Life/Popular pages|Popular pages]]''', a bot-generated list of pageviews, useful for focused cleanup of frequently viewed articles.

===Quality operations===

'''[[Wikipedia:Version 1.0 Editorial Team/Taxonomic articles by quality log|Quality operations]]''', a bot-generated detail activity log.

{{Commonscat}}
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