Taxonomic chauvinism

doi:10.1016/S0169-5347(01)02381-3

Trends in Ecology & Evolution

Volume 17, Issue 1, 1 January 2002, Pages 1-3

https://doi.org/10.1016/S0169-5347(01)02381-3 Get rights and content

Abstract

Research in ecology and behaviour is dominated by studies on birds and mammals, and scientists who work on less ‘popular’ organisms (such as amphibians and reptiles) frequently complain that referees are biased against them. Our survey of >1000 recent papers revealed that published studies on ectothermic vertebrates were framed more conceptually than were those on endothermic vertebrates, as predicted by this complaint. Such unconscious biases might substantially affect the publication process.

Section snippets

Are some taxonomic groups strongly over represented?

Our null hypothesis was that vertebrate classes that are more species rich should feature more commonly in the papers surveyed. However, although there are more than twice as many ectothermic species (fish, amphibians, squamate reptiles, turtles and crocodilians) as endothermic (avian plus mammalian) species (∼31 000 versus 13 000), >71% of the papers analysed dealt only with endotherms.

Birds were highly over-represented (n = 513; 44% of papers versus 20% of species), as were mammals (n = 320;

How can we measure ‘generality’ of an introduction?

We scored the length of each introduction (number of printed lines) and the ‘line of first mention’ of the study organism. That is, how far into the introduction is the study species (or higher lineage) mentioned for the first time? A more conceptually framed introduction will develop ideas before mentioning taxa, thus delaying the first mention of the study organism.

As expected, ‘narrow’ introductions (those lacking even a single sentence devoted entirely to general concepts) mentioned the

Are endothermic study organisms mentioned sooner and more often?

On average, the Class of the study organism was first mentioned at line 16 of the introduction in 833 papers on endotherms (mammals and birds), versus line 32 (on average) in 338 papers on ectotherms (reptiles, amphibians and fish: one-factor ANOVA, F_1,1169 = 122.8, P <0.0001; Fig. 1). Average values for line of first mention did not differ between the two endotherm classes, or among the three ectotherm classes (Fisher's PLSD, P >0.18 in all comparisons). However, the three ectotherms all

Are endotherm papers framed less broadly?

We classified 25.2% of the endotherm introductions as focusing exclusively on the study organism; this proportion was only 6.5% for ectotherm studies (χ² = 52.7, df = 1, P <0.0001). Therefore, ectotherm papers were focused more broadly than were endotherm papers.

Have these patterns changed through time?

Because we sampled papers from 1992, 1996 and 2000, we could look for any temporal shift in the generality of introductions. No such change was evident. The proportion of narrow introductions has decreased (Fig. 2a), but the taxonomic difference remains (Fig. 2). The proportion of ectotherm-based studies relative to endotherm-based studies has been stable (29% versus 71% in all three years).

Are there alternative interpretations of these patterns?

There are many reasons why research focuses on model organisms [6], and the over-representation of endotherms in ecological and behavioural studies is unsurprising. More worrying is whether this taxonomic bias prejudices the decisions of editors and referees. The publication differences between papers on ectotherms and endotherms are very clear (Fig. 1), so the only plausible challenge to this conclusion involves interpretation. In particular, do attributes of published introductions (line of

How can we redress this bias?

We doubt that an ‘ornithological Mafia’ has conspired to suppress other disciplines. Herpetologists are equally passionate about their study animals, and a brave new world in which reptiles replaced birds as model organisms would see a reversal, rather than a disappearance, of the existing biases. The personal interests of ornithologists and mammalogists have influenced the structure of published papers only because their study animals have dominated ecological research, and thus people

Acknowledgements

We thank the Foreigner's Hotel, Dalian for providing accommodation whilst we developed the ideas in this paper. Rex Cambag gave helpful comments, and numerous anonymous referees provided motivation. This study was funded by the Australian Research Council. X.B. is affiliated to the Conseil Général des Deux Sèvres, Niort; Centre d'Etudes Biologiques de Chize, UPR 1934, CNRS, 79360 Villiers en Bois, France.

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Trends in Ecology & Evolution

Research updateTaxonomic chauvinism

Abstract

Section snippets

Are some taxonomic groups strongly over represented?

How can we measure ‘generality’ of an introduction?

Are endothermic study organisms mentioned sooner and more often?

Are endotherm papers framed less broadly?

Have these patterns changed through time?

Are there alternative interpretations of these patterns?

How can we redress this bias?

Acknowledgements

J. Exp. Soc. Psychol.

Trends Ecol. Evol.

Consolation for the scientist: sometimes it is hard to publish papers that are later highly-cited

Soc. Stud. Sci.

Research update
Taxonomic chauvinism