Taxonomy isn't black and white
DNA barcoding method put to the test reveals new cryptic bird and butterfly
species
By Nick Atkinson

Two studies published this week by the University of Guelph's Paul Hebert
and colleagues appear to confirm DNA barcoding as a powerful tool in
taxonomic diagnostics. But claims and counterclaims about just what the
method can and can't deliver continue unabated.

In the first study, published in PLoS Biology, Hebert and colleagues present
an analysis of 260 known North American bird species. DNA barcodes-a 648-bp
region of the mitochondrial gene cytochrome c oxidase I (COI)-are either
identical or very similar within species, but differ between species. Of the
260 species examined, all were distinguished using barcodes, and four new
cryptic species were discovered.

The second study, appearing this week in PNAS, uses the same technique to
demonstrate that the neotropical skipper butterfly Astraptes fulgerator is
actually a species complex consisting of at least 10 species. According to
Felix Sperling, who was not involved in either study, Hebert's work is "an
excellent demonstration of the power of DNA barcoding to make sense of a
confusing welter of ecological and color pattern variation."

Full Text at TheScientist
http://www.biomedcentral.com/news/20040928/02
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