CLADISTIC TAXONOMY Meaning and
Definition
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Cladistic taxonomy is a scientific approach and method of classifying organisms based on their evolutionary relationships and shared characteristics. It is a subset of phylogenetics, which is the study of the evolutionary history and relationships among groups of organisms.
In cladistic taxonomy, organisms are arranged into groups called clades, based on the presence or absence of derived characteristics known as synapomorphies. These characteristics must be inherited from a common ancestor and represent evolutionary novelties that distinguish certain groups from others.
The main goal of cladistic taxonomy is to create a hierarchical representation of the evolutionary history of organisms, known as a cladogram or phylogenetic tree. This tree illustrates the branching patterns of different groups and shows the sequence of divergence from a common ancestor. The relationships depicted in a cladogram are solely based on the shared derived characteristics and do not consider other factors, such as ecological or behavioral similarities.
Cladistic taxonomy relies on the concept of monophyly, which states that a group should include the most recent common ancestor and all of its descendants. This ensures that each group is mutually exclusive and complete, avoiding the inclusion of organisms with different evolutionary origins.
The cladistic taxonomy approach has revolutionized the field of taxonomy by providing a rigorous and objective framework for classifying organisms based on their evolutionary relationships. It offers an effective tool for understanding the diversity of life and the patterns of evolutionary change over time.
Etymology of CLADISTIC TAXONOMY
The word "cladistic" originates from the term "clade", which was coined by the German biologist Julius Kühn in 1904. "Clade" comes from the Greek word "klados", meaning "branch". The term "cladistics", meaning "the classification of organisms based on shared characteristics", was introduced by Ernst Mayr and Julian Huxley in the 1950s.
The word "taxonomy" has its roots in the Greek terms "taxis", meaning "arrangement", and "nomos", meaning "law". "Taxonomy" was first used in its modern sense by the Swedish botanist Carl Linnaeus in the 18th century and refers to the science of classifying organisms into various categories or taxa based on their similarities and differences.
