[Taxacom] New lizard species

[Richard Zander]

Ah, orthodoxy. Actually the Code(s) are intended for all of us. Even the
unorthodox. 

"New era"? Like Lysenkoism was a new era? New eras offer great things to
substitute for the old, or at least build on the old. I see (1)
morphological parsimony to help create natural keys, and (2) molecular
analyses to show lineages and possible isolation events of individual
specimens (which are not exemplars of species or higher taxa until they
are statistically demonstrated as such). This is helpful information but
not signifying a new era.

Unless, unless . . . you think massive data about mostly non-coding
traits that help (when not terribly self-contradictory) show genetic
continuity of lineages, that this somehow overwhelms data on taxa in
morphological analyses? These data are about relationships of specimens,
not taxa. 

Yes, molecular analyses are beyond the purview of the Code(s), they are
more in the purview of True Believers.

*****************************
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
Modern Evolutionary Systematics Web site:
http://www.mobot.org/plantscience/resbot/21EvSy.htm
*****************************

-----Original Message-----
From: taxacom-bounces at mailman.nhm.ku.edu
[mailto:taxacom-bounces at mailman.nhm.ku.edu] On Behalf Of Kim van der
Linde
Sent: Tuesday, June 08, 2010 6:50 AM
To: Taxacom
Subject: Re: [Taxacom] New lizard species



On 6/8/2010 7:36 AM, Jason Mate wrote:
> P.S. OK, I thought of one thing that could happen, Phylocode will take
over!

It will anyway, just by virtue of the orthodoxy that is build in to the
code. This article, and the one on Zaprionus I mentioned are just a few
articles representing a new era. The wealth of molecular data and the
corresponding insights in the relationships between taxa/clades is going
to result in more and more situations that are beyond the purview of the
Code.

Kim