Re:Are Domestic and Wild Salmon Still the Same Species?
by Turing_Machine on Friday November 27, 2015 @01:37PM
(#10638309)
There are even not-uncommon situations where Population A can breed with Population B, and Population B can breed with Population C, but Population A and Population C can't interbreed.
Using "can breed" as the metric for "same species" creates the situation where A and B are the same species, and B and C are the same species, but A and C are not. That's clearly contrary to what most people have in mind when they use the word "species".
Species really should be a continuum rather than a binary.
Re:Are Domestic and Wild Salmon Still the Same Species?
by wmil on Friday November 27, 2015 @10:26AM
(#10637633)
Polar bears and grizzlies are probably a better example. They produce fertile offspring but no one thinks of them as the same species.
Re:Are Domestic and Wild Salmon Still the Same Species?
by galago on Friday November 27, 2015 @10:41AM
(#10637693)
Wolves, coyotes, domestic dogs are another example that comes up in this discussion.
Re:Are Domestic and Wild Salmon Still the Same Species?
by Turing_Machine on Friday November 27, 2015 @01:40PM
(#10638329)
Yeah, all of those can interbreed, more or less. On the other side of the coin, consider dogs alone. Successful breeding between Great Danes and Chihuahuas is quite rare. :-)
The "successful breeding" metric isn't very satisfactory on any level
So regarding its characterisation as "a very simple scientific test" - no, it isn't.