Title |
Millipede Taxonomy after 250 Years: Classification and Taxonomic Practices in a Mega-Diverse yet Understudied Arthropod Group
|
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Published in |
PLOS ONE, May 2012
|
DOI | 10.1371/journal.pone.0037240 |
Pubmed ID | |
Authors |
Michael S. Brewer, Petra Sierwald, Jason E. Bond |
Abstract |
The arthropod class Diplopoda is a mega-diverse group comprising >12,000 described millipede species. The history of taxonomic research within the group is tumultuous and, consequently, has yielded a questionable higher-level classification. Few higher-taxa are defined using synapomorphies, and the practice of single taxon descriptions lacking a revisionary framework has produced many monotypic taxa. Additionally, taxonomic and geographic biases render global species diversity estimations unreliable. We test whether the ordinal taxa of the Diplopoda are consistent with regards to underlying taxonomic diversity, attempt to provide estimates for global species diversity, and examine millipede taxonomic effort at a global geographic scale. |
X Demographics
Geographical breakdown
Country | Count | As % |
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United Kingdom | 1 | 25% |
Canada | 1 | 25% |
Unknown | 2 | 50% |
Demographic breakdown
Type | Count | As % |
---|---|---|
Scientists | 2 | 50% |
Members of the public | 1 | 25% |
Science communicators (journalists, bloggers, editors) | 1 | 25% |
Mendeley readers
Geographical breakdown
Country | Count | As % |
---|---|---|
Mexico | 2 | 2% |
United States | 2 | 2% |
Brazil | 1 | 1% |
Denmark | 1 | 1% |
France | 1 | 1% |
Unknown | 79 | 92% |
Demographic breakdown
Readers by professional status | Count | As % |
---|---|---|
Student > Master | 16 | 19% |
Student > Bachelor | 16 | 19% |
Researcher | 15 | 17% |
Student > Ph. D. Student | 6 | 7% |
Student > Doctoral Student | 4 | 5% |
Other | 13 | 15% |
Unknown | 16 | 19% |
Readers by discipline | Count | As % |
---|---|---|
Agricultural and Biological Sciences | 51 | 59% |
Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology | 4 | 5% |
Environmental Science | 3 | 3% |
Engineering | 3 | 3% |
Social Sciences | 2 | 2% |
Other | 6 | 7% |
Unknown | 17 | 20% |