Why Is It So Hard to Define a Species?

24/10/2024 30 min Temporada 3 Episodio 20
Why Is It So Hard to Define a Species?

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Episode Synopsis


The “species” category is almost certainly the best known of all the taxonomic classifications that biologists use to organize life’s vast diversity. It’s a linchpin of both conservation policy and evolutionary theory, though in practice biologists have struggled to find a definition that works across the natural world. In this episode, Kevin de Queiroz, a zoologist and evolutionary biologist, talks with host Janna Levin about the variety of ways to conceive of a species, and ways to understand the relationships among living things.