We explain what systematics is and what this branch of biology is responsible for. Also, what are the schools of systematics.
What is systematics?
Systematics means the branch of biology that deals with the classification of the species of known living beings based on the understanding of its evolutionary or phylogenetic history. It is known as edge (from Latin phylum) to each rung of the evolutionary ladder described by scientists.
Thus, the systematic is responsible for the description and interpretation of biological diversity that exists on our planet, based on the fundamental unit of its study, which is the species: a group of genetically and phenotypically similar living beings, capable of reproducing among themselves and generating fertile and viable offspring.
The species studied by systematics receive a Latin name known as scientific nameand which consists of two words written in italics, the first of which corresponds to the genus (the one that begins with a capital letter) and the second to the species (written all in lower case). For example, the human species is called Homo sapiens. These names often pay tribute to the scientists who discovered the species in question.
This branch of biology is mainly due to the studies and observations that, starting in the 18th century, gave rise to evolutionary theory, which, refined and endorsed by the studies of Charles Darwin and later generations of biologists and naturalists, allowed us to corroborate the origin. evolution of species and discard the creationist theses supported by religious tradition.
The systematic uses numerous tools and concepts from nearby disciplines in his studies such as taxonomy and nomenclature, which are more technical than disciplines. However, no other branch of biology, from zoology to microbiology and virology, lacks contact with the phylogenetic studies of this specialty.
See also: Anthropology
Schools of systematics
Systematics comprises three branches or schools, which propose specific methods of understanding and representing evolutionary history. These schools are:
- Evolutionary school It is based on the use of four main criteria to classify and organize life: morphological or bodily differences, adaptive niches, species richness and minimal monophyly.
- Phenetic taxonomy Considering that establishing the real and objective history of the evolution of life is impossible, he rather proposes establishing stable and practical categories to classify it, instead of trying to reconstruct the past of the species. To do this, he uses mathematics and phenogramsrepresentations that consider the degree of similarity between species.
- Cladistics Emerged in 1950 by William Hennig and widely developed since then, it proposes understanding the history of life from groups monophyletic: those in which an ancestral species and all its descendants are found.
