AlexC's Life List of Life (1 Viewer)

[AlexC]

Hey guys,

So branching from a project I used to distract myself last fall semester, I've decided to make a new list. Something which included my bird list (world total currently: 479 species), but I wanted something more rigorously ridiculous, requiring me to delve into all forms of nature.

I started my Life List of Life. All forms of life which I document, right here:
http://www.angelfire.com/ill/overworkedirish/lifelistoflife.html

I'll post my regular updates to the list here. Obviously, I have a lot of work to do . Please feel free to provide comments, suggestions, or corrections to the list on this thread.

 

[fugl]

Hey guys,

So branching from a project I used to distract myself last fall semester, I've decided to make a new list. Something which included my bird list (world total currently: 479 species), but I wanted something more rigorously ridiculous, requiring me to delve into all forms of nature.

I started my Life List of Life. All forms of life which I document, right here:
http://www.angelfire.com/ill/overworkedirish/lifelistoflife.html

I'll post my regular updates to the list here. Obviously, I have a lot of work to do . Please feel free to provide comments, suggestions, or corrections to the list on this thread.

A wonderful project--I'm lost in admiration at your energy. Do you limit yourself to "wild" life forms or (for example) do non-native plants in backyards and botanical gardens (or in nurseries for that matter) also count? How about baker's yeast on super market shelves? Many people (myself certainly included) only count birds that they are able to ID themselves on the basis of what they personally see and hear in the field. Is this your criterion for your all-life list? Or do you admit stuff on the basis of other people's say-so? Unless you're prepared to spend an inordinate amount of time keying-out species, I would have thought you'd have to for many taxa. But, good luck with your project. It will be very interesting to see how far you get with it.

 

[AlexC]

A wonderful project--I'm lost in admiration at your energy. Do you limit yourself to "wild" life forms or (for example) do non-native plants in backyards and botanical gardens (or in nurseries for that matter) also count? How about baker's yeast on super market shelves? Many people (myself certainly included) only count birds that they are able to ID themselves on the basis of what they personally see and hear in the field. Is this your criterion for your all-life list? Or do you admit stuff on the basis of other people's say-so? Unless you're prepared to spend an inordinate amount of time keying-out species, I would have thought you'd have to for many taxa. But, good luck with your project. It will be very interesting to see how far you get with it.

It's a very good question - and one that I have a general feel on.

In terms of macro-orgranisms, if an introduced species has an established population, I will count it - but with the note "intro" - e.g. Rock Pigeon in Connecticut, Bush Honeysuckle in northeastern Pennsylvania. But as I don't count zoo birds, I definitely wouldn't count botanical garden plants, though may have to evaluate case-by-case for backyard plants. Conversely, I will say that I plan on counting, for example, species of bacteria that I observe under a microscope in bio lab.

When it comes to insects and other groupings I may only be able to ID as far as family, but hey, Mayfly sp. is better than nothing right?

 

[Jos Stratford]

Given that, following threads and discussions on this here forum, it has become clear that we Europeans are of a different species to you folks over there, are you going to split Homo sapiens on your list, or simply stick to archaic 1996 views?

 

[AlexC]

Given that, following threads and discussions on this here forum, it has become clear that we Europeans are of a different species to you folks over there, are you going to split Homo sapiens on your list, or simply stick to archaic 1996 views?

Tell you what Jos, if you get a peer-reviewed paper published, I'll think about it . In the meantime, Sibley & Monroe reign supreme :-O.

(To respond less-jokey, I know it's easy to make Americans your scapegoat Jos, but your beef goes beyond a cross-pond disagreement. The Opus Editors over in the Opus Forum - primarily non-Americans - came to an agreement on the consensus issue. Fingerpointing - as tongue-in-cheek as it may be - doesn't really make sense. Can you stop hating on my country? Please? This isn't the first time I've asked this of you, buddy.)

 

[mccpack]

Given that, following threads and discussions on this here forum, it has become clear that we Europeans are of a different species to you folks over there, are you going to split Homo sapiens on your list, or simply stick to archaic 1996 views?

So.....there is a difference. I thought, perhaps, that there was.

 

[AlexC]

UPDATES/STATUS:

Phylum Porifera - Barrel sponge sp. found with naturalist kayak tourguide Bill Koegh kayaking around No Name Key, Florida keys. I can't be certain, but my brother remembers Bill describing it as a "barrel sponge." In my pseudo-nature guide, "The Florida Keys: Paddling Guide" (actually written by Bill), it lists numerous sponges in the category "barrel sponges." Looking at pictures online of numerous species, I really can't narrow it down by any means.

Class Actinopterygii - Added a few fish from snorkling in Cancun, kayaking in Florida keys, and fishing in Maine. Fish are more my brother's thing, and when I'm back "home" in a few days, he and I are going to go through his guide and recall our Cancun snorkling sightings. More entries to come.

Class Amphibia - I know I'm missing some eastern frogs I've seen, I plan on updating when I have my Eastern Peterson's guide at hand. My original copy was destroyed, my new one's sitting waiting for me in Connecticut.

Class Sauropsida - Recently added Arizona snakes and Whiptail sp. Still need to add Garter snake and numerous eastern lizards, info to come with verification in Eastern Peterson.

Class Aves - Ah, yes. My specialty. Species total: 479 species worldwide. I followed Clements sequencing, although I may change specific genera based on solid sequence data in ratified studies.

Class Mammalia - I wish there was more to say here. :-C

Phylum Arthropoda - Added TONS of spiders and insects. Obviously, a lot of this is hindsight chronicling, hence the excessive generalizations and use of "sp.". Some of this will go by the wayside as I actively key out IDs of species in the future, but some also comes with the territory of Class Insecta. Class Malacostraca is missing numerous crab species I've seen, but I was very excited to add the CRAZY cool species "Mangrove Tree Crab," which I caught up with in the Florida Keys.

Kingdom Fungi - Pending information. Hurumph. I need to by a mushroom guide, for starters. Any suggestions for North America?

Kingdom Plantae - A limited memory of plants - though obviously only a sliver of even what I can ID on site. Entries incomplete, more info to come.

 

[Jos Stratford]

your beef goes beyond a cross-pond disagreement.

My beef? I do believe the current beef that is causing international disagreement is not mine http://uk.us.biz.yahoo.com/ap/080703/skorea_us_beef.html

Can you stop hating on my country? Please?

Oh Alex, your country is fine, I have no dislike whatsoever of the country. In fact, I will be in the fabled land in a little over two weeks

 

[AlexC]

Just want to add, in addition to giving me suggestions, comments, or corrections, if people are interested in specific species sightings, I'm happy to share further information on this here thread - obviously there's only so much I can fit into an excel file!

EDIT: Also, if anyone has any info on sequencing OUTSIDE of Class Aves, PLEASE let me know - I'm kind of in the dark there, right now just following a combination of Wikipedia and books I don't yet fully grasp.

 

[AlexC]

HIGH-LEVEL TAXONOMY NOTES

In making this list, I thought a lot about high-level taxonomy. I really wanted to display the information about these organisms, but there's so much data regarding the branching of the world's taxa! When I first started, I was determined to show it all - subregnums, infraregnums, superphylums, subphylums, infraphylums, microphylums, superclasses, subclasses, infraclasses, superorders, suborders, infraorders, superfamilies, subfamilies, tribes, superspecies, not to mention untitled rankings! - EVERYthing. I mean, these relations need to be made clear, right?

Well, it just got out of hand. Many taxa don't fall into at least some of those groupings, and my main goal was getting clouded. Plus, there's a lot that's still a mess! I mean, from what I read, Class Aves is actually within Order Saurischia - how can I display a grouping within a lower-level one???

Nature can't be stamped out into a little taxonomy package labelled "the way things are." I finally decided to stick with absolute, standard groupings: Kingdom, Phylum/Division (used in botany), Class, Order, Family, Genus, Species (and subspecies in some cases, but that's just because I'm a birder ). It was a really tough decision - I mean, some subphylums display VERY important information - like Subphylum Vertebrata or Subphylum Crustacea. But the fact is, in terms of internal classification levels, they're simply not consistent when it comes to importance.

Please give me some feedback on this topic, if you can.

 

[fugl]

HIGH-LEVEL TAXONOMY NOTES

In making this list, I thought a lot about high-level taxonomy. I really wanted to display the information about these organisms, but there's so much data regarding the branching of the world's taxa! When I first started, I was determined to show it all - subregnums, infraregnums, superphylums, subphylums, infraphylums, microphylums, superclasses, subclasses, infraclasses, superorders, suborders, infraorders, superfamilies, subfamilies, tribes, superspecies, not to mention untitled rankings! - EVERYthing. I mean, these relations need to be made clear, right?

Well, it just got out of hand. Many taxa don't fall into at least some of those groupings, and my main goal was getting clouded. Plus, there's a lot that's still a mess! I mean, from what I read, Class Aves is actually within Order Saurischia - how can I display a grouping within a lower-level one???

Nature can't be stamped out into a little taxonomy package labelled "the way things are." I finally decided to stick with absolute, standard groupings: Kingdom, Phylum/Division (used in botany), Class, Order, Family, Genus, Species (and subspecies in some cases, but that's just because I'm a birder ). It was a really tough decision - I mean, some subphylums display VERY important information - like Subphylum Vertebrata or Subphylum Crustacea. But the fact is, in terms of internal classification levels, they're simply not consistent when it comes to importance.

Please give me some feedback on this topic, if you can.

I think you're definitely on the right track in sticking to the standard categories everybody knows and loves, as attempting anything more ambitious would soon spin totally out-of-control. The fact is (I assert glibly, since I'm not a professional biologist) with the floods of new information on phylogenetic relationships at all levels of the hierarchy, traditional Linnean classification is bursting at the seams and it's hard to see how it can survive much longer. I mean, apart from the difficulty of achieving uniformity across the major taxa, how many named levels is it sensible to accept?

 

[AlexC]

Back from my vacation...

UPDATES/STATUS:

Phylum Echinodermata added (Green Sea Urchin, Starfish sp.)

Class Amphibia
- Saw and added 3 for Ranidae

Class Sauropsida
- From memory, added American Alligator, Red-spotted Newt, Garter Snake
- Saw and added Redback Salamander

Class Aves
- Placed Phoenicopteriformes next to Podicipediformes (sister orders)
- Was missing Vesper Sparrow
- Saw and added Black-legged Kittiwake, Dovekie, and Common Murre

Class Mammalia
- Saw and added North American Porcupine
- From memory, added Bat sp., Striped Skunk, Ringtail, and Round-tailed Ground Squirrel

Class Malacostraca added (Pillbug sp.)

Phylum Mollusca added (Slug sp.)

Kingdom Fungi added (Yellow Foot - more mushrooms to come)

Kingdom Plantae
- From memory, added Willow sp.
- Saw and added Poison-ivy and MANY trees

 

[AlexC]

Further info on added trees:
White Pine
Pitch Pine
Balsam Fir
Eastern Hemlock
Red Spruce
White Spruce
Northern White Cedar
American White Birch
Bigtooth Aspen
American Basswood
Striped Maple
Norway Maple

 

[AlexC]

UPDATES/STATUS:

Phylum Cnidaria added (Coral sp.)

Class Actinopterygii - added (from Cancun snorkling, March 2005):
Green Moray
Squirrelfish sp.
Banded Butterflyfish
French Grunt
Queen Angelfish
French Angelfish
Grouper sp.
Stoplight Parrotfish
Goby sp.
Ocean Surgeonfish
Blue Tang
Great Barracuda

Class Maxillopoda added (Northern Rock Barnacle)

Class Bivalvia added (Mussel sp.)

Kingdom Plantae - added:
Gray Birch
Yellow Birch

 

[AlexC]

If anyone knows anything about plant phylogeny/classification, I'd love to get some advice. My head is spinning from the various treatments by different authorities. How can orders not have a class?? Why can't you just... hell, make up a monotypic class name? (I'm mainly looking at APG II: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/APG_II_system)

 

[danehower]

If anyone knows anything about plant phylogeny/classification, I'd love to get some advice. My head is spinning from the various treatments by different authorities. How can orders not have a class?? Why can't you just... hell, make up a monotypic class name? (I'm mainly looking at APG II: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/APG_II_system)

You have got to be kidding me Alex , Dude - I need an advil after looking at that wiki ! Hey, when you get into bacteria ID's I am going to have to cut you off.

 

[AlexC]

UPDATES / STATUS:

I FINALLY got Class Aves caught up to where I actually stand - at 502 World ticks. I haven't actively birded much at all lately, so my most recent ticks are a bit dated: Red-necked Grebe (in MD last February), Ivory Gull (the Cape May individual 2 weeks ago), and my Turkey/Greece trip from last January (never fully updated the list):
European Shag
Eurasian Sparrowhawk
Eurasian Buzzard
Eurasian Kestrel
Mew Gull (L. canus heinei)
Caspian Gull (listed under Yellow-legged Gull, so not a full tick)
Laughing Dove
Rose-ringed Parakeet
Rook
Western Rock Nuthatch
Common Chiffchaff
Sardinian Warbler
European Robin
Black Redstart
Song Thrush
Mistle Thrush
Rock Sparrow/Petronia

I also put in a real effort to step up state list accurately too (pan right along the spreadsheet when looking at Aves). Obviously many that I'm missing are just birds that I can't specifically remember seeing in a given state, but I plan on keeping better records in order to bulk up state list numbers.

 

[Mysticete]

Just noticed your online life list;

I too keep a pretty rigorous life list for all tetrapods I see, and try to use the most recent suggested or implied classification. I would suggest you might want to consider double-checking your reptiles and amphibians with cnah.org, as the genera assignments have changed for some North American species, and several families have been broken up into smaller families.

 

[AlexC]

Just noticed your online life list;

I too keep a pretty rigorous life list for all tetrapods I see, and try to use the most recent suggested or implied classification. I would suggest you might want to consider double-checking your reptiles and amphibians with cnah.org, as the genera assignments have changed for some North American species, and several families have been broken up into smaller families.

Thanks for the heads up, Mysticete - my herp taxonomic denomination was basically formed using a combination of Wikipedia info and my Eastern/Central Peterson Reptile and Amphibians guide (copyright '91), so I figured it probably wasn't 100% on.

According to CNAH's higher taxonomy level list (http://cnah.org/taxonomy.asp), should I really have Class Mammalia between Amphibia and Reptilia?

 

[Mysticete]

I guess probably so, although to be honest I keep my herp, mammal, and bird checklists as different excel files, so I don't really have to deal with this.