History
Taxonomy is a system of classifying living things based on common characteristics or ancestry. Wolves are in the Kingdom Animalia, along with all animals. They are in the Phylum Chordata, which includes all animals with a backbone. Wolves are in the Class Mammalia, along with all other mammals. Their order is Carnivora, which they share with all carnivores. The Wolf family is Canidae, to which all dog-like mammals belong. Finally, their Genus is Canis, which includes all dogs, and wolf species include Lupus and Rufus, grey and red. The Genus and Species of any animal are given together in Latin as the scientific name, Canis lupis in this case. Using Latin ensures that all scientists worldwide can refer to the same animals in the same way. The Genus is always capitalized and the Species given in lowercase. This two-name system is called binary nomenclature. This system differs from common names. For example, we might talk about a Timber Wolf or an Arctic Wolf, but in reality, these are both Grey Wolves, Canis lupus.