![]() ![]() It is beyond the scope of this contribution to attempt to solve all problems with character delimitation and coding, but one important issue involving the distinction between characters and states remains problematic that might be clarified via review and consideration in the light of current thinking in systematics.Īlthough the idea of homologous structures among taxa has a long history (cf. Therefore, it is important that an internally consistent, nonarbitrary, yet flexible way of viewing characters be available that can accommodate any type of organismal aspect. Gould and Lewontin, 1979), physiology, and any branch of biology that is concerned with the attributes of organisms. ![]() Clearly, the importance of characters also extends beyond systematics, being central in evolutionary process studies (cf. Characters are the fundamental units used to formalize hypotheses of homology for all phylogenetic analyses, meaning that the decision about how observations are translated into characters is of paramount importance in systematics.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply.AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |