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Date: Fri, 09 Feb 2001 08:45:18 -0500
From: Kathy Kron <kronka@wfu.edu>
To: PhyloCode@ouvaxa.cats.ohiou.edu
Subject: poorly known groups
I'd like to address the question of higher "ranks" from the perspective of my current work in the Ericaceae (blueberry family). My coworkers and I are working on a new classification based on phylogenetic relationships - at this point we are working under the current ICBN but I would like to point out that the current code gives us precious little guidance on names at higher ranks other than "Family" (especially between "family" and "genus"). The only person who has made a broad attempt at sorting out some of the chaos has been Jim Reveal. Especially with the changes in the code made in the St. Louis meeting, it is abundantly clear that the current system is not satisfactory for even "well-known" groups like Ericaceae. However, the PhyloCode offers a system where one can place a new entity without having to designate a particular formal rank. From my work on the tropical blueberries (which are poorly known - especially in the Old World) it is clear that the present (ICBN) nomenclatural system has forced newly discovered entities to be placed in a genus, before they can be formally described. This has (in my view) resulted in a number of extremely artificial groups, that upon, even preliminary phylogenetic study, are shown to be mere mental constructs. Kathy -- Dr. Kathleen A. Kron Associate Professor Department of Biology Wake Forest University Winston-Salem, NC 27109-7325 phone (336)758-5321 fax (336)758-6008