New taxonomy and niche partitioning on coral reefs: jack of all trades or master of some?

N Knowlton; J B Jackson

doi:10.1016/0169-5347(94)90224-0

New taxonomy and niche partitioning on coral reefs: jack of all trades or master of some?

Trends Ecol Evol. 1994 Jan;9(1):7-9. doi: 10.1016/0169-5347(94)90224-0.

Authors

N Knowlton¹, J B Jackson

Affiliation

¹ Nancy Knowlton and Jeremy Jackson are at the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Apartado 2072, Balboa, Republic of Panama.

PMID: 21236753
DOI: 10.1016/0169-5347(94)90224-0

Abstract

Recent taxonomic advances are challenging widely held theories of the ecology and evolution of coral reef Invertebrates and communities. Large numbers of sibling species have been discovered across a variety of higher taxa. Differences in distribution, behavior and life history characteristics among sibling species demonstrate that niche diversification is more finely tuned, and interactions among organisms more specific, than most reef ecologists believed previously. Ecological and evolutionary understanding depends on good taxonomy.