Concept in Definition ABC

A species is for science each of the groups into which a gender, that is, a set of entities with similar and related characteristics.

For biology, the species is the basic unit of the classification biological and as such constitutes its most relevant object of study. Thus, a species can be human. More specifically, for two or more individuals to be considered as belonging to this classification, these organisms they must be able to interbreed and produce fertile offspring. For other theorists, belonging to a species is given by the similarity of DNA or specific traits.

The concept in any way is complex, since it is commonly spoken of species when it refers, for For example, the lions, the toads, the ombúes, when nevertheless each of these entities constitutes its own once family much larger species. For example, the deer is a family of 34 species. More complex is the case when it comes to different species such as dinosaurs, which can only be accessed in fossilized forms.

In total, the number of species in the world is between 1.5 and 2 million, but this is an approximate value, since there may be unknown species even for biological studies.

To speak of species, we have the concept of biological species (population natural of individuals that can interbreed), evolutionary (a lineage of individuals that maintain the same characteristics), morphological (according to physical characteristics and appearance), phylogenetics (which retain a single derived or apomorphic character) or ecological (a lineage that occupies a particular adaptive zone).

In recent decades, the study of species has been seriously altered by the investigation on those plant or animal species that, due to human, natural or other action, are at risk of extinction. For these same reasons, and also in recent years, many species are already considered extinct.