birding-aus

subspecies etc

To: Gregory Little <>, Birding Aus <>
Subject: subspecies etc
From: Andrew Hobbs <>
Date: Sun, 03 Feb 2008 17:13:37 +0900
Essentially the terms are interchangeable though some authors do make a
distinction.

'Varieties' is usually the term used in dealing with plants.

For non-human species 'subspecies' is the term usually used in recent
times, replacing the older use of 'races'.

For humans the only term generally used was 'races'.

However some authors make a distinction between the latter two terms
with 'races' denoting rather less difference than 'subspecies', while
others don't make this distinction.  In addition with the historical
connotations of the word 'race' with regard to humans still hanging
around, plus intensive work showing the very superficiallity of "races"
in humans, the term has tended to be dropped altogether by many authors
as implying unintended meaning.

Andrew


Gregory Little wrote:
Gooday birders

Postings re the new Christidis and Boles, have caused me to look through
the field guides to see where my tick list might go. Am in the process
of getting a copy of C&B. However, am confronted in the field guides
with “races”, ie for Striated Pardalotes, that are described in HANZAB
as “subspecies”. Same applies in the case of Variegated fairy-wrens and
presumably others.

Sooo, can anyone offer a distinction between subspecies, race or
variety, or, are these terms all the same?

Greg Little

Greg Little - Principal Consultant
General Flora and Fauna
PO Box 526
Wallsend, NSW, 2287, Australia
Ph    02 49 556609
Fx    02 49 556671
HYPERLINK "http://www.gff.com.au"www.gff.com.au


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