Biological Species Concept Flashcards, test questions and answers
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What is Biological Species Concept?
The Biological Species Concept (BSC) is a widely accepted definition of species. It was first proposed by Ernst Mayr in 1942, and it states that a species is defined as a group of interbreeding natural populations that are reproductively isolated from other such groups. This means that the members of a biological species can reproduce amongst themselves, but not with individuals from other species. The BSC also suggests that any two populations capable of interbreeding are to be classified as belonging to the same species, even if they have morphological or genetic differences. The BSC has been widely adopted as the defining criterion for what constitutes a species because it considers reproductive capability among different populations and not just physical characteristics or morphology. This allows for more accurate classification than just looking at external features and traits, which can lead to incorrect assumptions about the level of relatedness between different organisms. By taking into account genetic composition, behaviour, ecology and geography in addition to physical features, the BSC provides an effective way to partition biodiversity into distinct units and accurately classify them into their respective species. Although this concept has been used extensively in evolutionary biology since its inception in 1942, some scientists have voiced criticisms about its validity as a definitive measure for classifying organisms into distinct units at all levels including subspecies and varieties within larger taxonomic categories like genera or families. One major criticism is that there may be cases where two geographically separated populations cannot interbreed due to environmental factors but still belong to the same biological species despite this reproductive barrier thus making the BSC insufficient for proper classification in those circumstances.