Exobiology Classification

[tantric]

In one of my ecology classes, we had a discussion about developing a naming system suited to ecology rather than evolutionary biology. This hypothetical system would describe an organism based on its position in the food web rather than phylogeny. The current system is hodgepodge - apex predatory, keystone species, etc. A systematic way of describing such things would be enormously useful in xenobiology, too.

I strongly suspect that if there is ever xenobiology, the only important part of a species name will be that it's unique. That will be the key to a database having the species' genome and ecological data. Binomials will hold on for historical reasons, but the rest of it could pretty much be dropped. Besides, we're all deathly sick of taxonomy papers.

[Flyndaran]

I recently created an alien species that happens to be a non-oxygen producing photosynthesizing-lithotrophic-methanogen with six limbs and a silica denticle covered radula for an "eating" organ. There is literally no earth animal I can imagine that could carry over for naming purposes.

[malloyd]

Originally Posted by Flyndaran

I recently created an alien species that happens to be a non-oxygen producing photosynthesizing-lithotrophic-methanogen with six limbs and a silica denticle covered radula for an "eating" organ. There is literally no earth animal I can imagine that could carry over for naming purposes.

Wait, it eats rocks and sunlight and exhales methane? Where does it get the carbon and hydrogen?

[vicky_molokh]

I suppose the classification has a use as a purely descriptive device. When you see a bunch of wildlife and want to verbally denote this one squishy six-tentacled torsoless four-eyed thing leisurely bathing in the puddle on the ground, you might as well refer to it as a cephalopod for the time being.

Of course, you get to the problem of having to deal with yet-unseen things, so expect coined/repurposed terms like lithomorph, hexapod, dendrohumanoid, electromagnetobiome and so on.

[Agemegos]

Originally Posted by malloyd

Wait, it eats rocks and sunlight and exhales methane? Where does it get the carbon and hydrogen?

Calcite rock and its water of crystallisation, maybe? That would involve dumping quicklime, which is unneighbourly.

[Flyndaran]

Originally Posted by malloyd

Wait, it eats rocks and sunlight and exhales methane? Where does it get the carbon and hydrogen?

Soda lake water. Most of our carbon needs involve pH balance rather than structural.
Drinking water is kind of assumed for life and doesn't require a unique trophic name in my opinion.