What is "cladistics"

n. (context systematics English) An approach to biological systematics in which organisms are grouped based upon synapomorphy (shared derived characteristics) only, and not upon symplesiomorhy (shared ancestral characteristics).

n. a system of biological taxonomy based on the quantitative analysis of comparative data and used to reconstruct cladograms summarizing the (assumed) phylogenetic relations and evolutionary history of groups of organisms [syn: cladisitic analysis]

k Cladistics (from Greek , klados, i.e., "branch") is an approach to biological classification in which organisms are categorized based on shared derived characteristics that can be traced to a group's most recent common ancestor and are not present in more distant ancestors. Therefore, members of a group are assumed to share a common history and are considered to be closely related.

The techniques and nomenclature of cladistics have been applied to other disciplines. (See phylogenetic nomenclature and the relevant section below).

Cladistics is a bimonthly peer-reviewed scientific journal publishing research in cladistics. It is published by Wiley-Blackwell on behalf of the Willi Hennig Society. Cladistics publishes papers relevant to evolution, systematics, and integrative biology. Papers of both a conceptual or philosophical nature, discussions of methodology, empirical studies on taxonomic groups from animals to bacteria, and applications of systematics in disciplines such as genomics and paleontology are accepted. Five types of paper appear in the journal: reviews, regular papers, forum papers, letters to the editor, and book reviews. According to the Journal Citation Reports, the journal has a 2014 impact factor of 6.217, ranking it 6th out of 46 journals in the category "Evolutionary Biology". Its editor-in-chief is Dennis Wm. Stevenson.