Phenetic vs Phylogenetic
Classification
Process of arranging taxa into groups of accordance with a plan and in conformity with a naming
system
Biological classification
o A process carried out in order to communicate certain interrelationships of organisms
Function/ Purpose
Information storage & retrieval
Reflect nature
Easy to use
Stable
Predictive
Concise
Linnaeus and Classification
Carolus Linnaeus- designed our hierarchical classification scheme
- Kingdom
- Phylum
- Class
- Order
- Family
- Genus
- Species
I. Phenetic Classification
The grouping of taxa on the basis of their overall similarity
o The more features two taxa share, the more likely they will be put in the same group
o Any feature can provide information for a classification
1.a Artificial Classification
>ancient phonetic system
> based on a limited number of characters
>a priori classification
- the characters are selected first, then the taxa are analyzed and grouped based on the criteria
selected
Early classification systems- Artificial
- Based on habit and/or characteristics important to humans (i.e medicines, food)
Examples:
- Theophrastus
o Habit (i.e tree, shrub); cultivated and wild kinds;annual, perennial and biennial life
cycles; superior vs. inferior ovaries; determinate vs.indeterminate; and distinct vs.
connate petals
- Linnaeus
o Stamen number with style number
1.b Natural Classifications
>more recent phonetic systems
> makes use of many different characters
- the taxa are studied, data are recorded and the similarities and differences are used to allow
the taxa to order themselves “naturally”
>a posteriori classification
- the groupings are made after the features are observed
1.c Numerical Taxonomy
>computerized phonetic systems
> use of comupters to study large data sets and determine the similarity of the taxa in a critical
unbiased manner.
- computer calculates the similarity for every pair of taxa then plots a phenogram (based on a
cluster analysis) that shows the similarity between the taxa
> popularized by Robert Sokal and Peter Sneath
Three important assumptions:
The greater the amount of information for a taxon, the greater the strength of the classification
Every character gets equal weighing
Classification is based on overall similarities in the taxa
Method
Select taxa
Select characters
Estimate similarity
Create phenogram (groups constructed)
Interpret results
Advantages
- Reproducible
- Greater predictive value than other phonetic classifications
- Objective and free from bias
- Integrate data from many sources
- Can handle large amounts of data
Disadvantages
- Doesn’t really account for evolutionary change
- Convergent evolution
o Two species exposed to same selection pressures share similar features
o
o
o
II. Phylogenetic Classification
Characters are analyzed in a way that detects their evolutionary development
o Phylogeny is the eveolutionary history of a species or group of related species
Synonyms
o Phylogenetic systematics; Cladistics
Phylogeny
Phylogenies are inferred by identifying characters that vary among species
These characters can be:
o Morphological
o Chromosomal
o Molecular
o Behavioral or ecological
o
Phylogenetic diagram (tree)
o Also called a cladogram
Cladogram depicts patterns of shared characteristics among taxa
o If shared characteristics are homologous thus, it is explained by common ancestry
Each branch in the tree is called a clade
o A group of species that includes an ancestral species and all its descendants
When constructing a cladogram…
The greater the number of homologous parts between two organisms, the more closely related
they are
Homologous characters
o Are shared characters that result from common ancestry
The classification scheme must reflect these similarities
Analogous characters
Similarity between two species due to convergent evolution rather than to descent from a
common ancestor with the same trait
Convergent evolution
o The independent evolution of a similar feature in two or more lineage
o Occurs when a similar environmental pressures and natural selection produce similar
(analogous) adaptations in organisms from different evolutionary lineages
Also called homoplasies/homoplasy
Plesiomorphic Vs Apomorphic
Plesiomorphic character
Ancestral or primitive character
o Symplesiomorphy
Shared primitive characteristics
Homologous characters that are shared by more than one taxon
E.g. backbone is shared by mammals and reptiles
Do not provide useful information for forming of nested series of clades
Apomorphy
Derived or advance character
Kinds:
o Synapomorphy
Shared derived characters
A new evolutionary feature that is unique for a particular clade
Most useful for determining evolutionary relationships
o Autapomorphy
A derived character that occur in a single lineage
Cladistic analysis and Classification:
Kinds of Groups
Monophyletic group
Includes a common ancestor and all of its descendents
- Represents a valid clade
Paraphyletic group
Includes a common ancestor and some but not all of its descendents
Polyphyletic group
A group whose members do not share a recent common ancestor
Phylogenetic classification recognizes only monophyletic groups
Paraphyletic and polypheletic groups distort the accurate portrayal of eveolutionary history
and should be rejected
