Monotypic

Monotypic

Monotypic is an adjective that refers to a taxonomic group with only one type:

In botany, "monotypic" means that a taxon has only one species: "Ginkgo" is a monotypic genus, while "Ginkgoaceae" is a monotypic family. The phrase is not accurate in cases where a species includes more than a single type; some species may include several subspecies (or other infraspecific taxa) each of which will have a type. A more accurate term in those cases is unispecific.:An example is the family Cephalotaceae, with only one species: "Cephalotus follicularis", the Albany Pitcher Plant.

In zoology "monotypic" refers to a taxon that contains only one immediately subordinate taxon. [Mayr & Ashlock (1991)] For example, a monotypic genus has only one species. Conversely, one can say that the contained taxon is monotypic within the larger taxon; a genus monotypic within a family.:An example is the genus "Tarsius" which is monotypic within the family Tarsiidae, which is itself monotypic in the Tarsiiformes. An example of a monotypic species is the Hyacinth Macaw ("Anodorhynchus hyacinthinus"), in which no subspecies can be distinguished. The Bearded Reedling ("Panurus biarmicus") has numerous subspecies across its range, but belongs to the genus "Panurus" (monotypic as to species), which current knowledge considers monotypic within the family Panuridae.

In the view of evolutionary biology, taxonomy is a means to represent phylogenetic knowledge. Thus, it is usually avoided to establish monotypic taxa if this does not seem warranted e.g. by phylogenetic evidence such as fossils or inference from cladistic analyses [E.g. Parham & Feldman (2002)] .

ee also

*
* Polytypic
* Race (classification of human beings) (a more detailed definition of monotypic in the context of humans, "Homo sapiens")

Footnotes

References

* (1991): "Principles of Systematic Zoology" (2nd ed.). McGraw-Hill. ISBN 0-07-041144-1
* (2002): Generic revisions of emydine turtles. "Turtle and Tortoise Newsletter 6: 28–30. [http://cc.usu.edu/~crfeldman/Parham_Feldman_02.pdf PDF fulltext]


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  • monotypic — monotypic. См. монотипический. (Источник: «Англо русский толковый словарь генетических терминов». Арефьев В.А., Лисовенко Л.А., Москва: Изд во ВНИРО, 1995 г.) …   Молекулярная биология и генетика. Толковый словарь.

  • monotypic — [män΄ō tip′ik] adj. 1. having only one type, as a genus consisting of only one species 2. having the nature of a monotype …   English World dictionary

  • Monotypic — Monotype Mon o*type, Monotypic Mon o*typ ic, a. [Mono + type: cf. F. monotype.] (Biol.) Having but one type; containing but one representative; as, a monotypic genus, which contains but one species. [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • monotypic —   Of a family with only one genus, or a genus with only one species, e.g. Cycadaceae is a monotypic family, while Microcycas and Stangeria are monotypic (and monospecific) genera …   Expanded glossary of Cycad terms

  • monotypic — /mɒnoʊˈtɪpɪk/ (say monoh tipik) adjective 1. having only one type. 2. of the nature of a monotype. 3. Biology (of a taxon) having a single member: monotypic family; monotypic species …  

  • monotypic — a taxonomic unit including only one lower unit, e.g. a monotypic genus includes only one species …   Dictionary of ichthyology

  • monotypic — adjective Of a taxon which only contains one member of the next lesser rank, such as an order which contains a single family. Much more diffuse affinities occur to the Australasian monotypic Goebeliellaceae …   Wiktionary

  • Monotypic taxon — Monotypic redirects here. For the type of printmaking, see monotyping. In biology, a monotypic taxon is a taxonomic group with only one biological type. The term s usage differs slightly between botany and zoology. The term monotypic has a… …   Wikipedia

  • monotypic — adjective Etymology: mon + type + ic Date: circa 1859 including a single representative used especially of a genus with only one species …   New Collegiate Dictionary

  • monotypic — adj. [Gr. monos, one; typos, type] Pertains to a taxon containing only one immediate subordinate taxon, as a genus containing only one species, or a species containing only one subspecies …   Dictionary of invertebrate zoology

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