Paraphyly
Paraphyly
Paraphyly (/pəˈræfɪli/; from Greek: παρά, para meaning 'beside' and φυλή, phylē meaning 'tribe, race') is a term used in phylogenetics to describe a group of organisms that includes an ancestor but not all of its descendants.
Etymology
The term "paraphyly" comes from the Greek words "para", meaning "beside", and "phyle", meaning "tribe" or "race". It was first used in the context of taxonomy in the 20th century.
Definition
In phylogenetics, a group is said to be paraphyletic if it consists of the group's last common ancestor and all descendants of that ancestor excluding a few—typically only one or two—monophyletic subgroups. The group is said to be paraphyletic with respect to the excluded subgroups.
Related Terms
- Monophyletic: A group of organisms that consists of their most recent common ancestor and all its descendants.
- Polyphyletic: A group of organisms derived from more than one common evolutionary ancestor or ancestral group and therefore not suitable for placing in the same taxon.
- Cladistics: A method of classification of animals and plants according to the proportion of measurable characteristics that they have in common.
- Phylogenetic tree: A branching diagram or "tree" showing the inferred evolutionary relationships among various biological species or other entities based upon similarities and differences in their physical or genetic characteristics.
External links
- Medical encyclopedia article on Paraphyly
- Wikipedia's article - Paraphyly
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