Abstract of Smith, G.R. 1995. Chapter 3, Introduction to Classification, In Bond, C.E. (ed.), Biology of Fishes. W. B. Saunders. In Press.

Fish systematics aims to represent natural (monphyletic) groups, diagnosed cladistically with diverse characters (morphological, behavioral, ecological, molecular, biochemical, chromosomal, etc.). The chapter discusses fish systematics in relation to speciation, cladistic methods, phylogeny, fossils, and conservation.