Global InformationGenus information
Genus (/ˈdʒiːnəs/ pl.: genera /ˈdʒɛnərə/) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family as used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses.[1] In binomial nomenclature, the genus name forms the first part of the binomial species name for each species within the genus.
- E.g. Panthera leo (lion) and Panthera onca (jaguar) are two species within the genus Panthera. Panthera is a genus within the family Felidae.
The composition of a genus is determined by taxonomists. The standards for genus classification are not strictly codified, so different authorities often produce different classifications for genera. There are some general practices used, however,[2][3] including the idea that a newly defined genus should fulfill these three criteria to be descriptively useful:
- monophyly – all descendants of an ancestral taxon are grouped together (i.e. phylogenetic analysis should clearly demonstrate both monophyly and validity as a separate lineage).
- reasonable compactness – a genus should not be expanded needlessly.
- distinctness – with respect to evolutionarily relevant criteria, i.e. ecology, morphology, or biogeography; DNA sequences are a consequence rather than a condition of diverging evolutionary lineages except in cases where they directly inhibit gene flow (e.g. postzygotic barriers).
Moreover, genera should be composed of phylogenetic units of the same kind as other (analogous) genera.[4]
- ^ "ICTV Taxonomy". International Committee on Taxonomy of Viruses. 2017. Archived from the original on March 20, 2020. Retrieved May 29, 2018.
- ^ Sigward, J. D.; Sutton, M. D.; Bennett, K. D. (2018). "How big is a genus? Towards a nomothetic systematics". Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society. 183 (2): 237–252. doi:10.1093/zoolinnean/zlx059. hdl:10023/16213. Archived from the original on 2019-05-30. Retrieved 2018-12-22.
- ^ Gill, F. B.; Slikas, B.; Sheldon, F. H. (2005). "Phylogeny of titmice (Paridae): II. Species relationships based on sequences of the mitochondrial cytochrome-b gene". Auk. 122 (1): 121–143. doi:10.1642/0004-8038(2005)122[0121:POTPIS]2.0.CO;2. S2CID 86067032.
- ^ de la Maza-Benignos, Mauricio; Lozano-Vilano, Ma. de Lourdes; García-Ramírez, María Elena (December 2015). "Response paper: Morphometric article by Mejía et al. 2015 alluding genera Herichthys and Nosferatu displays serious inconsistencies". Neotropical Ichthyology. 13 (4): 673–676. doi:10.1590/1982-0224-20150066.