Genus

About: Genus is a research topic. Over the lifetime, 68921 publications have been published within this topic receiving 590966 citations. The topic is also known as: monospecies genus & genus (zoology).

Four new genera based on Achnanthes (Achnanthidium) together with a re-definition of Achnanthidium

Abstract: The genus Achnanthidium comprises a collection of monoraphid species common in freshwaters and less so in marine habitats, though the latter are relatively uninvestigated as far as this genus is concerned. We propose that Achnanthidium be confined to the taxa around A. minutissima. Some of the remaining taxa are transferred to four new genera, Planothidium, Rossithidium, Karayevia and Kolbesia. This still leaves a large number of species to be re-allocated and these, for the moment, will have to be left as Achnanthidium sensu lato.

Evolution of reproductive systems in the genus Silene

Abstract: The genus Silene contains both hermaphrodite, gynodioecious and dioecious species, dioecy being represented in three sections of the genus. To locate the events of change of reproductive systems, we compared ITS sequences of 22 species of Silene chosen throughout the whole genus, and four putative outgroup species. Gynodioecy, which is the most common reproductive system within the genus Silene and in closely related genera such as Saponaria and Dianthus , is proposed to be ancestral in the genus. Dioecy has evolved at least twice: once in the section containing S. latifolia , and once in the clade containing S. otites and S. acaulis ssp. bryoides . Evolution towards hermaphroditism, associated with evolution of selfing, has also occurred at least twice, in S. gallica and S. conica .

One Fungus, One Name: Defining the Genus Fusarium in a Scientifically Robust Way That Preserves Longstanding Use

Abstract: In this letter, we advocate recognizing the genus Fusarium as the sole name for a group that includes virtually all Fusarium species of importance in plant pathology, mycotoxicology, medicine, and basic research. This phylogenetically guided circumscription will free scientists from any obligation to use other genus names, including teleomorphs, for species nested within this clade, and preserve the application of the name Fusarium in the way it has been used for almost a century. Due to recent changes in the International Code of Nomenclature for algae, fungi, and plants, this is an urgent matter that requires community attention. The alternative is to break the longstanding concept of Fusarium into nine or more genera, and remove important taxa such as those in the F. solani species complex from the genus, a move we believe is unnecessary. Here we present taxonomic and nomenclatural proposals that will preserve established research connections and facilitate communication within and between research communities, and at the same time support strong scientific principles and good taxonomic practice.

Biological Inventory Using Target Taxa: A Case Study of the Butterflies of Madagascar

Abstract: Biotic inventories provide critical data for conservation planning, but frequently, conservation decisions are made without surveys, due to lack of time, funds, or appropriate methodology. A method, target taxon analysis, is therefore proposed for streamlining regional biotic inventories, while simultaneously increasing their taxonomic coverage and spatial resolution. In this method, regional inventories focus on a number of narrowly defined target taxa, chosen to represent collectively an array of higher taxa. Such target taxa should be information rich; in other words, the pattern of species distributions in these taxa should correlate either with patterns of environmental heterogeneity or with distributional patterns of species in unrelated taxonomic groups. It is suggested that clades that experienced an evolutionary radiation within the region are likely to be information rich for conservation planning at or within this regional scale. Such clades will be identifiable as low—ranking, species—rich taxa with high endemism. The information richness of these potential target clades can then be evaluated by direct gradient methods of analysis that relate community compositional change to environmental factors, or by correlating distributional patterns of species among separate target clades. To assess this approach to biological inventory, a species—rich genus and subgenus of endemic butterflies from the island of Madagascar were chosen as target taxa and were evaluated for information richness in comparison to the entire butterfly fauna of Madagascar. Using canonical correspondence analysis and other analytical techniques, the subgenus of Malagasy Henotesia species (Satyrinae) proved to be as good or better than the entire butterfly fauna at delineating a variety of environmental gradients at both local and landscape scales. The endemic genus Strabena (Satyrinae) was only able to delineate such patterns under a restricted set of conditions. However, this genus, while species rich in Madagascar, was not exceptionally diverse nor were its species members abundant within the study area. It is concluded that target taxon analysis is a potentially useful tool for providing high—quality data while expanding coverage of taxonomic diversity for conservation planning.