taxonomy

The discovery that what was long believed to be one fly species is actually two deepens researchers’ understanding of plant-pollinator relationships in a unique habitat in southern Africa.

The International Committee on Systematics of Prokaryotes recently pulled the rank of phylum into its code of official nomenclature. Experts say the move will help standardize science in the long run but potentially disrupt research now.

Shared features, such as thick, slimy skin and a throat filled with teeth, suggest that medusafishes are all related.

The newly characterized “elegant jellyfish,” roughly the size of a human hand, had been on display in two aquariums in Japan for more than a decade.

A tidy-up of a New Zealand storage room led to the sale of naming rights for three new-to-science Galápagos Islands species.

Plant species officially reported to be lost are in fact persevering in the wild, in seed banks or botanical gardens, or as other species now recognized to be taxonomic synonyms.

With modern technologies unearthing novel bacterial and archaeal species by the dozens, hundreds, or even thousands, manually naming them all is no longer practical, scientists say.

Join The Scientist on March 19 to discuss Lulu Miller’s book about a determined taxonomist whose life and work constitute a fable illustrating the hazards of categorization.

Meet some of the people featured in the September 2020 issue of The Scientist.

The Field Museum researcher and biology instructor, who died of complications associated with COVID-19, used DNA sequencing to identify new species of plants and birds.

Researchers use advanced imaging techniques to see what happens when a male and a female mate.

The taxonomist described more than 800 species of fish.

An analysis of the En Tibi herbarium’s plants and handwriting has given clues to the identity of its maker.

The plant awareness revolution will be led by poets, philosophers, and hipsters; not just scientists.

The discovery of ancient clades of brittle stars at the bottom of the Pacific Ocean adds to concerns that commercial exploitation of the area could destroy numerous taxa before they’ve even been identified.

The same study also finds there are three species of Electrophorus, rather than one.

Scientists work to help relocate colleagues who lost everything.

Quentin Wheeler’s firing of department chairs earlier this year didn’t sit well with university faculty members.  

There are countless ways for scientists to say, “I love you.” Naming a slime-mold beetle after your wife (and another after your ex-wife) is, apparently, one of them.