[Taxacom] The only systematics

[Sean Brady]

I am not sure either how many REVSYS grants there are, but Jim is not alone.
I'm currently a co-PI on a REVSYS grant entitled "A Global Monographic
Revision of the Ant Genus Paratrechina" whose title obviously states that
alpha taxonomy is the major goal of the project  Yes, there will be
molecular phylogenetics as well in the project (because it will be of great
help in the higher-level systematics of the group), but I don't think anyone
could argue that we had to "slide in" the alpha taxonomy in our project.

Cheers,
Seán


**********************
Seán Brady
Research Entomologist
Curator of Hymenoptera
National Museum of Natural History
Smithsonian Institution
email: bradys at si.edu
phone: 202-633-0997
website: http://entomology.si.edu/StaffPages/BradyS.htm





On 2/25/09 6:47 PM, "jwhitfie at life.uiuc.edu" <jwhitfie at life.uiuc.edu> wrote:

> There is also a RevSys (Revisionary Systematics) separate program at NSF -
> Paul Marsh and I have a grant under this which should lead to descriptions
> and interactive keys to around 300 currently undescribed Heterospilus
> (parasitic wasp) species. Not sure how many RevSys grants there are, but
> ours is not unique...
> 
>> Okay, so alpha taxonomy slid in under biodiversity studies. What I mean,
>> I guess, are revisions, you know, the old standard monographs where,
>> yes, phenetic cluster analysis, parsimony trees, biosystematics,
>> chromosome numbers, and so on may help, but alpha taxonomy is primary.
>> 
>> *****************************
>> Richard H. Zander
>> Voice: 314-577-0276
>> Missouri Botanical Garden
>> PO Box 299
>> St. Louis, MO 63166-0299 USA
>> richard.zander at mobot.org
>> Web sites: http://www.mobot.org/plantscience/resbot/
>> and http://www.mobot.org/plantscience/bfna/bfnamenu.htm
>> *****************************
>> 
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: taxacom-bounces at mailman.nhm.ku.edu
>> [mailto:taxacom-bounces at mailman.nhm.ku.edu] On Behalf Of Brian O'Meara
>> Sent: Wednesday, February 25, 2009 4:38 PM
>> To: taxacom at mailman.nhm.ku.edu
>> Subject: Re: [Taxacom] The only systematics
>> 
>> Serendipitously, the link seemed to go to all of DEB awards, not just
>> "phylogenetic systematics", where there seems to be funding for alpha
>> taxonomy of the sort you want. For example, the first grant listed is
>> <http://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward.do?AwardNumber=0841734>, a
>> biodiversity survey of freshwater algae of the Hawaiian islands under
>> the Biodiversity Surveys and Inventory program. According to the
>> study abstract, "The objectives are to 1) establish long-term
>> archived collections of Hawaiian freshwater algae morphological and
>> genetic studies, 2) make all data available through a project
>> database and website, and 3) describe newly discovered freshwater
>> algal taxa from the Hawaiian Islands." This sounds like alpha
>> taxonomy to me (describing newly discovered species), plus some
>> bioinformatics and training -- "phylogeny" or "evolution" or "tree"
>> aren't mentioned at all.
>> 
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> 
> 
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