Species, lineages, splitting, and divergence: why we still need ‘anagenesis’ and ‘cladogenesis’

In a recent review, Vaux, Trewick & Morgan‐Richards (2016) argued that species are ‘arbitrary’, speciation virtually unstudyable (especially in the fossil record), and that the terms ‘anagenesis’ and ‘cladogenesis’ are confusing, unnecessary, and perhaps even misleading as descriptors of evolution. Their paper, however, contains numerous debatable statements, and does not in the end accomplish what they say is their primary aim: to clarify terminology and facilitate communication. Species seldom appear instantaneously, and therefore their exact time of origin is difficult or impossible to identify precisely. Yet this does not mean that species do not exist, do not originate or cannot be studied objectively. Species are real biological phenomena in being separate evolutionary lineages and, as such, can frequently be recognized, at least to some level of resolution, in the fossil record. The concepts and terms of anagenesis and cladogenesis are still needed and very useful as descriptors of evolution.

Source: Biological Journal of the Linnean Society - August 31, 2016 Category: Research Authors: Warren D. Allmon Tags: Comment Source Type: research