Circumscription (taxonomy)

Circumscription (taxonomy)

In taxonomy, circumscription is the definition of the limits of a taxonomic group of organisms. One goal of taxonomy is to achieve a stable circumscription for every taxonomic group. Achieving stability can be simple or difficult.

An example of a taxonomic group with unstable circumscription is Anacardiaceae, a family of flowering plants. Some experts favor a circumscription[1] in which this family includes the subfamilies Cassuvieae, Spodiaceae, and Spondiaceae (which other experts segregate into other families, namely Cassuviaceae, Spodiadaceae, and Spondiadaceae), and excludes the segregate families Blepharocaryaceae, Julianaceae, Pistaciaceae, and Podoaceae.

See also

References


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем сделать НИР

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Circumscription — may refer to: Circumscribed circle Circumscription (logic) Circumscription (taxonomy) Carneiro s Circumscription Theory a theory about the origins of the political state in the history of human evolution proposed by the American anthropologist… …   Wikipedia

  • taxonomy —   Circumscription, classification, and naming of organisms; in plants, systematic botany.   Cf. nomenclature …   Expanded glossary of Cycad terms

  • Taxonomy of the Phyllanthaceae — Here is a full taxonomy of the family Phyllanthaceae. Its circumscription is nearly coincident to that of ex subfamily Phyllanthoideae of the Euphorbiaceae, where this family was split from. The exceptions are that the ex tribe Drypeteae has… …   Wikipedia

  • Synonym (taxonomy) — In scientific nomenclature, a synonym is a scientific name that is or was used for a taxon of organisms that also goes by a different scientific name.[1][2] For example, Linnaeus was the first to give a scientific name (under the currently used… …   Wikipedia

  • Plant taxonomy — is the science that finds, describes, classifies, identifies, and names plants. It thus is one of the main branches of taxonomy. Plant taxonomy is closely allied to plant systematics, and there is no sharp boundary between the two. In practice,… …   Wikipedia

  • List of systems of plant taxonomy — This list of systems of plant taxonomy presents “taxonomic systems” used in plant classification. A is a coherent whole of taxonomic judgements on circumscription and placement of the considered taxa. It is only a “system” if it is applied to a… …   Wikipedia

  • Malvaceae — Least Mallow, Malva parviflora Scientific classification Kingdom: Plantae …   Wikipedia

  • Type (biology) — Type specimen for Cimbrophlebia brooksi, a fossil scorpion fly. By convention, the red label denotes a type specimen. In biology, a type is one particular specimen (or in some cases a group of specimens) of an organism to which the scientific… …   Wikipedia

  • Correct name (botany) — In botany, the correct name according to the International Code of Botanical Nomenclature (ICBN) is the one and only botanical name that is to be used for a particular taxon, when that taxon has a particular circumscription, position and rank.[1] …   Wikipedia

  • Alismatales — Taxobox name = Alismatales image caption = Alisma plantago aquatica image width = 300px regnum = Plantae divisio = Magnoliophyta classis = Liliopsida ordo = Alismatales ordo authority = Dumort. subdivision ranks = Families subdivision = See… …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”