Re: En: species, subspecies, strains, populations, races etc.

[Lcrabo@aol.com]

In a message dated 11/23/99 2:30:53 PM, you wrote:

<<What would you say if population A' (that can breed with sp. A but not with

sp. B) and population B' (vice-versa) can interbreed? All of this being in

mind that it MUST be natural.

The guppy was introduced in Brazil as a larvofagous (is this right?, help me

Tsuh) and now, here in Sao Paulo, we can collect the "barrigudinho-pintado"

(Poecilia vivipara) with many patterns of guppy. In tanks or ponds they

interbreed freely, but once the introduction was artificial, we can't say

that they are of the same species.

Thanks god I'm not a taxonomist.>>

I just finished a paper on the taxonomy of several species of moths from 
western North America.  Previous authors working with little material named 
several species from separate localities.  When I assembled more material it 
became evident that all were part of a widespread species with clinal 
variation.  I imagine that working with Apistos is a little like what the 
earlier authors faced - not enough material.  Also, lepidopterists working on 
western North American species face a situation of many young taxa.  The 
present climate is relatively recent, so many species are just "figuring out 
who they are" so to speak.  There are some taxa that behave as separate 
species in some or most areas but become as one in others.  This could easily 
be the case for our favorite fish too, and it certainly confuses things for 
those of us who like to classify organisms.  Lepidopterists rely on many 
things to try and sort this out: morphology, habitat, food plant preferences, 
coexistence of two or more forms etc.

By the way, I believe that humans easily satisfy classical criteria for 
subspecies, although we are blurring the lines by moving around so much in 
recent times.  We get around that by calling ourselves different races - a 
category without taxonomic recognition.  However, I'm with Mike W. in 
considering all of us to be the same family.

Lars


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