Re: Taxa nomy (and intro)

[SeanSt8579@aol.com]

In a message dated 3/11/04 11:46:01 AM Eastern Standard Time, 
david.marjanovic@gmx.at writes:

<< Oh yes, it has such problems, because it requires that every species is put
 in a genus. For example, it is impossible to assign the ancestor of any two
 genera to a monophyletic genus. Assign it to one or the other of its
 descendants, and that genus is then paraphyletic; give it a genus of its
 own, and that genus is doubly paraphyletic; lump all three into one genus,
 and you've merely moved the problem. >>

Hmm...I don't get it.

Suppose we have some assemblage [(X+Y) + (A + B)], where the letters are 
species. Why can't I name monophyletic group X + Y Genus1 (with X Genus1 
species1 
and Y Genus1 species2), and monophyletic group A + B Genus2 -- the whole 
shabang put into a family?

I mean, I dont see why genera are *necessarly* paraphyletic, although I agree 
they often are.

Sean