Isaac Nick J B, Mallet James, Mace Georgina M
Institute of Zoology, Zoological Society of London, Regent's Park, London, UK, NW1 4RY.
Trends Ecol Evol. 2004 Sep;19(9):464-9. doi: 10.1016/j.tree.2004.06.004.
Species numbers are increasing rapidly. This is due mostly to taxonomic inflation, where known subspecies are raised to species as a result in a change in species concept, rather than to new discoveries. Yet macroecologists and conservation biologists depend heavily on species lists, treating them as accurate and stable measures of biodiversity. Deciding on a standardized, universal species list might ameliorate the mismatch between taxonomy and the uses to which it is put. However, taxonomic uncertainty is ultimately due to the evolutionary nature of species, and is unlikely to be solved completely by standardization. For the moment, at least, users must acknowledge the limitations of taxonomic species and avoid unrealistic expectations of species lists.
物种数量正在迅速增加。这主要是由于分类膨胀，即已知的亚种由于物种概念的变化而被提升为物种，而不是因为新的发现。然而，宏观生态学家和保护生物学家严重依赖物种清单，将其视为生物多样性的准确和稳定衡量标准。确定一个标准化的通用物种清单可能会改善分类学与其用途之间的不匹配。然而，分类学的不确定性最终是由于物种的进化性质，不太可能通过标准化完全解决。至少目前，用户必须认识到分类物种的局限性，并避免对物种清单抱有不切实际的期望。
