ZooSysEvo organized the 2nd edition of the Iberian Systematic Biologist biannual meeting. There were 90 participants that presented 30 oral contributions and as many posters. Grad students had a major role in the congress, contributing about half of the scientific presentations. This is the only scientific meeting organized in the Iberian Peninsula specifically devoted to Systematic Biology, the study and characterization of biodiversity.
What is Biological Systematics?
Biological Systematics has a well-defined research program. However, it is sometimes confused with other disciplines, some of which actually includes (i.e. taxonomy). Also, definitions and uses of the term seem to differ across countries and languages. Therefore, a fully explicit definition is required for everybody to have a clear idea of what the congress is about. Systematics is the field of biology devoted to the study of biodiversity and its origins. It aims to unravel the evolutionary relationships between organisms, species and higher taxa, as well as other biological entities such as genes and communities, and understand the evolution of lineages, including both phenotypic and genotypic traits, ecological interactions and geographical distributions. An important part of systematics focuses on developing methods for various aspects of phylogenetic inference and taxonomy (naming and classification)..
