Exist sub-species?????

[martin at CUSLM.CA]

Well, philosophy is not my thing.  You will soon realize it.

So, Byron said :

> I don't think sub-species exist.  At least not independent of human
> observation.

We are talking of living organisms, aren't we ?

> They do not behave like individuals (in the philosophical
> sense), and thus it is difficult to argue that they have a metaphysical
> reality.  Species are real (metaphysically), but I have yet to see any
> convincing arguments that taxonomic categories above or below the level of
> species have ontological reality, and are thus not arbitrary.

I would say that species is the least arbitrary level of taxonomical
hierarchy; it is not devoid of arbitrariness.  A human being can say that to
an other human being.  Morever, I have problem with using ontology with
someting consisting of more than an individual.

> Some folks
> may find the term useful, but I don't, and I doubt population geneticists
> care for the term either.

Fortunately, taxonomists do care (I do.  Am I the only one ?).

> That is, it doesn't matter if their units are
> called subspecies, metaspecies, populations, metapopulations, semispecies,
> etc., the results of their research efforts are unaffected.  However,
> erroneously estimating the number and relationships among _real_ species
> _can_ screw up research grounded in the comparative method.  Rank them if
> you wish, but there are ways to describe variation within and among
> populations less arbitrary than the information content of "sub-species."

Everybody has his own preferences.  I am inclined to think that my
interest in understanding nature (via taxonomy) is as real and as valuable
than those of anybody else in the biological community.

> For the _reality_ of species as self-delimiting individuals see:
>
> Ghiselin, M.  1974.  A radical solution to the species problem.
> Systematic Zoology 23:536-544.
>
> Ghiselin, M.  1987.  Species concepts, individuality, and objectivity.
> Biology and Philosophy 2:127-143.
>
> Hull, D. L.  1978.  A matter of individuality.  Philosphy of Science
> 45:335-360.

Thank you for the references.

Martin Dubé