New insights into the species problem.
Historical opinions of the "species problem" are briefly reviewed, and four salient stages are recognized according to origin of species concepts. We propose that species is the unit preserving superior gene assembly and is maintained by specific mechanisms. Based on characteristics of plant evolution, we assume that understanding plant species may include three stages, i.e. morphological recognition stage, multidisciplinary verification stage, and illuminating mechanisms preserving superior gene assembly.
Yang
Yong
Y
State Key Laboratory of Systematic and Evolutionary Botany, Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China. ephedra@ibcas.ac.cn
Zhou
ZheKun
Z
D000818:Animals; D005075:Biological Evolution; D013045:Species Specificity