Norms of evidence in the classification of living fossils

Research output: Contribution to journalReview articlepeer-review

Abstract

Some species have held fast for millions of years as constants in a changing world. Often called “living fossils,” these species capture scientific and public interest by showing us the vestiges of an earlier world. If living fossils are defined by a holistic pattern of low evolutionary rates or stasis, however, then classifying a species as a living fossil involves the application of sophisticated norms of scientific evidence. Using examples from Crocodilia and the tuatara (Sphenodon punctatus), I show how scientists’ evidential criteria for classifying living fossils are contentious and underspecified in many cases, threatening the concept’s explanatory interest and its adequacy for sustaining a collective problem agenda as proposed by Scott Lidgard and Alan Love. While debates over the definition of the living fossil concept may appear fruitless, I suggest they can be productive insofar as the debate leads to clarified and improved evidential standards for classification. To this end, I formulate a view of the living fossil concept as an investigative kind, and compare two theoretical frameworks as a basis for shared evidential norms: the Zero Force Evolutionary Law framework, introduced by Daniel McShea and Robert Brandon, and the statistical model selection framework first developed by Gene Hunt in the 2000s.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Article number1198224
JournalFrontiers in Ecology and Evolution
Volume11
DOIs
StatePublished - 2023
Externally publishedYes

Keywords

  • evolutionary rate
  • natural kinds
  • random walk
  • stasis
  • tempo and mode of evolution
  • trait evolution

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics
  • Ecology

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