Phylocode, Cladistics and Eclecticism ...

[Sigfrid Ingrisch]

Dear all,

with in interest and amusement I was following the long discussions on
Cladistics and Eclecticism. As it starts again:

It looks to me the difference between "cladists" and "eclecticists" has
not to do with science but with definition (or call it belief or view of
life).

According to the definition of a "cladist" speciation always gives rise
to two new taxa even if one of the daughter taxa is genetically
completely identic with the parent taxon. According to this definition
paraphyletic taxa are artificial and should be eliminated. They are
completely right.

The "eclecticistic" definition differs. If after speciation one of the
resulting taxa is genetically identic with what it was before, it is the
same species. According to this definition one species may give rise so
several daughter species. Thus paraphyletic taxa do really exist. They
are also completely right.

Because their definitions differ, they cannot understand each other.

Sigfrid Ingrisch

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Dr. Sigfrid Ingrisch
Eichendorffweg 4
D-34385 Bad Karlshafen, Germany
e-mail: sigfrid.ingrisch at planet-interkom.de
German Orthoptera collections online http://www.dorsa.de
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