Difference between revisions of "Taxonomy"
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| − | '''taxonomy''' (''pl.'' taxonomies) – the science of naming species; ideally taxonomy should reflect the phylogeny of a group of species; nevertheless, the evidence that has been used for naming taxa has traditionally been based upon descriptive characters such as morphology, anatomy, ultrastructure or even chemistry; more recently molecular studies have demonstrated that classical taxonomies deducted from descriptive characters are not always reliable; classical data must therefore be evaluated using molecular evidence analyzed by cladistic methods before new taxonomies are introduced. | + | '''taxonomy''' ([[Category:Noun]][[:Category:Noun|noun]], ''pl.'' taxonomies) – the science of naming species; ideally taxonomy should reflect the phylogeny of a group of species; nevertheless, the evidence that has been used for naming taxa has traditionally been based upon descriptive characters such as [[morphology]], [[anatomy]], [[ultrastructure]] or even chemistry; more recently molecular studies have demonstrated that classical taxonomies deducted from descriptive characters are not always reliable; classical data must therefore be evaluated using molecular evidence analyzed by [[cladistic]] methods before new taxonomies are introduced. ''Related terms:'' [[biological classification]], [[classification]], [[Linnaean system]], [[cladistics]], [[phylogeny]], [[nomenclature]]. |
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Latest revision as of 02:00, 7 December 2005
taxonomy (noun, pl. taxonomies) – the science of naming species; ideally taxonomy should reflect the phylogeny of a group of species; nevertheless, the evidence that has been used for naming taxa has traditionally been based upon descriptive characters such as morphology, anatomy, ultrastructure or even chemistry; more recently molecular studies have demonstrated that classical taxonomies deducted from descriptive characters are not always reliable; classical data must therefore be evaluated using molecular evidence analyzed by cladistic methods before new taxonomies are introduced. Related terms: biological classification, classification, Linnaean system, cladistics, phylogeny, nomenclature.
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