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The selection pressure will be towards more and more species since it has more clickbait potential: "New human ancestor species discovered in Africa", "Ecologis

by nonbel 9y ago

The selection pressure will be towards more and more species since it has more clickbait potential: "New human ancestor species discovered in Africa", "Ecologists discover 10,000 new bacterial species in a hydrothermal vent", etc. I really don't see any pressures currently in favor of "lumping". I guess just inertia.

eesmith 9y ago
I ... don't think you have much experience with the issue? "Until the late 1980s, as many as 32 subspecies were recorded; genetic study of mitochondrial DNA[35] found many of these are too similar to be recognized as distinct at a molecular level. Following the research, the canonical Mammal Species of the World (3rd ed.) recognizes six subspecies, five of which are solely found in Latin America" - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cougar#Subspecies https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cougar#Subspecies There is a continuous question of if a given "species" is really a distinct species, and thus protected under the Endangered Species Act, or if it's a subspecies or hybrid. There is political pressure to lump, because of the cost of protecting a species. Some examples of lumping: "Extensive studies conducted by researchers at the Denver Museum of Nature and History have shown that the Preble meadow jumping mouse is not a distinct species from other common mice and does not deserve protection under the Endangered Species Act." - http://www.citizenreviewonline.org/jan2004/rodents.htm http://www.citizenreviewonline.org/jan2004/rodents.htm Is the grey wolf really a distinct species? https://phys.org/news/2016-07-gray-wolf-endangered-species-genomic.html https://phys.org/news/2016-07-gray-wolf-endangered-species-g... . "The Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) under the authority of the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (Act), as amended, proposes to remove the plant Echinocereus lloydii (Lloyd's hedgehog cactus) from the Federal List of Endangered and Threatened Plants. Lloyd's hedgehog cactus was listed as endangered on October 26, 1979, due to threats of collection and highway projects. Recent evidence indicates that Lloyd's hedgehog cactus is not a distinct species but rather a hybrid. Therefore, Lloyd's hedgehog cactus does not qualify for protection under the Act." - https://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-1996-06-14/html/96-15124.htm https://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-1996-06-14/html/96-15124.ht...
- nonbel 9y ago
  Interesting, thanks.

by nonbel 9y ago

eesmith 9y ago

I ... don't think you have much experience with the issue? "Until the late 1980s, as many as 32 subspecies were recorded; genetic study of mitochondrial DNA[35] found many of these are too similar to be recognized as distinct at a molecular level. Following the research, the canonical Mammal Species of the World (3rd ed.) recognizes six subspecies, five of which are solely found in Latin America" - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cougar#Subspecies https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cougar#Subspecies There is a continuous question of if a given "species" is really a distinct species, and thus protected under the Endangered Species Act, or if it's a subspecies or hybrid. There is political pressure to lump, because of the cost of protecting a species. Some examples of lumping: "Extensive studies conducted by researchers at the Denver Museum of Nature and History have shown that the Preble meadow jumping mouse is not a distinct species from other common mice and does not deserve protection under the Endangered Species Act." - http://www.citizenreviewonline.org/jan2004/rodents.htm http://www.citizenreviewonline.org/jan2004/rodents.htm Is the grey wolf really a distinct species? https://phys.org/news/2016-07-gray-wolf-endangered-species-genomic.html https://phys.org/news/2016-07-gray-wolf-endangered-species-g... . "The Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) under the authority of the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (Act), as amended, proposes to remove the plant Echinocereus lloydii (Lloyd's hedgehog cactus) from the Federal List of Endangered and Threatened Plants. Lloyd's hedgehog cactus was listed as endangered on October 26, 1979, due to threats of collection and highway projects. Recent evidence indicates that Lloyd's hedgehog cactus is not a distinct species but rather a hybrid. Therefore, Lloyd's hedgehog cactus does not qualify for protection under the Act." - https://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-1996-06-14/html/96-15124.htm https://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-1996-06-14/html/96-15124.ht...

nonbel 9y ago
Interesting, thanks.