Accepting taxonomic decisions

[Curtis Clark]

At 08:56 AM 8/30/99 +0000, Riaan Stals, Flying wrote:
>When should a non-specialist taxonomist (e.g. a non-Vireo chap) *not*
>accept a taxonomic decision made by a specialist (i.e. a Vireo girl)?
>If ever? Or never? How much leeway should a taxonomist have in
>"interpreting" a taxonomic action taken by someone in a taxon other
>than one's own speciality?

Many of us are asked to referee papers submitted to journals that involve
organisms other than our specialties. We evaluate the evidence, the care
with which it was gathered, and the clarity with which it is presented.

Certainly if a taxonomist merged any two species of flowering plants simply
because they could form fertile hybrids, I would reject the merger until I
had seen more data, even if I knew nothing about the plants, and said
taxonomist was the acknowledged world expert.


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Curtis Clark                  http://www.csupomona.edu/~jcclark/
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