An Essay on the Principles of Ciliate Systematics

Abstract

In order to ascertain the patterns of genetic and morphological variation which exist in nature, and to seek to explain those patterns with nontrivial, predictive and falsifiable hypotheses, it is necessary to adopt a quantitative, multivariate methodology that concentrates on the evolution of populations. The biological species concept is an unrealistic basis for the study of ciliate evolution, and most attempts at phylogenetic reconstruction ignore the essence of the evolutionary process. Simple examples are given, based on the genus Euplotes, to illustrate an axiomatic approach to ciliate systematics.