What is the difference between rank and taxon?
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A taxon (plural taxa) is any taxonomic unit. For example, the class Mammalia is a taxon which includes all mammalian species. Similarly, a species is a taxon, Panthera tigris being the tiger. This taxon contains lower taxa, which are sub-species, such as Panthera tigris tigris (Bengal tiger).
Rank is simply the level of a taxon in the taxonomic heirarchy. For example, the taxa Mammalia and Aves both have the same rank since they are both classes. Panthera tigris sumatrae is of a lower rank than Panthera tigris because the former is a sub-species and the latter a species. Use of the term rank is only truly meaningful when comparing two taxa.
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A taxon is not an organism, but it’s rather any grouping one can distinguish. It is a taxonomic group or unit. A group of organisms that belongs together as per taxonomists. A taxon differs in sizes an example of big one is the beetles and a small one would be the giraffes.
Rank is simply the level of a taxon in the taxonomic heirarchy .
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