biology Biology is the scientific study of life. It is a natural science with a broad scope but has several unifying themes that tie it together as a single, coherent field. For instance, all organisms are made up of cells that process hereditary i ...

, a tribe is a taxonomic rank above

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial nom ...

, but below

family Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its members and of society. Idea ...

and subfamily. It is sometimes subdivided into subtribes. By convention, all taxonomic ranks from genus upwards are capitalized, including both tribe and subtribe. In

zoology Zoology ()The pronunciation of zoology as is usually regarded as nonstandard, though it is not uncommon. is the branch of biology that studies the animal kingdom, including the structure, embryology, evolution, classification, habits, and ...

, the standard ending for the name of a zoological tribe is "-ini". Examples include the tribes Caprini (goat-antelopes), Hominini (hominins),

Bombini The Bombini are a tribe of large bristly apid bees which feed on pollen or nectar. Many species are social, forming nests of up to a few hundred individuals; other species, formerly classified as ''Psithyrus'' cuckoo bees, are brood parasites of ...

(bumblebees), and

Thunnini A tuna is a saltwater fish that belongs to the tribe Thunnini, a subgrouping of the Scombridae (mackerel) family. The Thunnini comprise 15 species across five genera, the sizes of which vary greatly, ranging from the bullet tuna (max length ...

(tunas). The tribe Hominini is divided into subtribes by some scientists; subtribe

Hominina Australopithecina or Hominina is a subtribe in the tribe Hominini. The members of the subtribe are generally ''Australopithecus'' (cladistically including the genera ''Homo'', ''Paranthropus'', and ''Kenyanthropus''), and it typically includes ...

then comprises "humans". The standard ending for the name of a zoological subtribe is "-ina". In

botany Botany, also called , plant biology or phytology, is the science of plant life and a branch of biology. A botanist, plant scientist or phytologist is a scientist who specialises in this field. The term "botany" comes from the Ancient Greek w ...

, the standard ending for the name of a botanical tribe is "-eae". Examples include the tribes Acalypheae and Hyacintheae. The tribe Hyacintheae is divided into subtribes, including the subtribe Massoniinae. The standard ending for the name of a botanical subtribe is "-inae". In

bacteriology Bacteriology is the branch and specialty of biology that studies the morphology, ecology, genetics and biochemistry of bacteria as well as many other aspects related to them. This subdivision of microbiology involves the identification, classificat ...

, the form of tribe names is as in botany, e.g., Pseudomonadeae, based on the genus name ''

Pseudomonas ''Pseudomonas'' is a genus of Gram-negative, Gammaproteobacteria, belonging to the family Pseudomonadaceae and containing 191 described species. The members of the genus demonstrate a great deal of metabolic diversity and consequently are able t ...

''.

Rank recognition

An unfamiliar taxonomic rank cannot necessarily be identified as a tribe merely by the presence of one of the standard suffixes: * zoological ''-ini'' uniquely suffixes the animal tribe, Article 29 * zoological ''-ina'' uniquely suffixes the animal subtribe * zoological ''-inae'' uniquely suffixes the animal subfamily * botanical ''-eae'' also suffixes class ''-phyceae'', suborder ''-ineae'', family ''-aceae'', and subfamily ''-oideae'' (these additional ''-eae'' ranks are present in bacteria, plants, algae, and fungi, but not animals) Article 16 Article 19 Accordingly, working within animals alone, subfamily ''-inae'', tribe -ini, and subtribe ''-ina'' are unique suffixes to their specific taxonomic ranks. At the other extreme, working within algae alone, ''-eae'' suffixes class ''-phyceae'', suborder ''-ineae'', family ''-aceae'', subfamily ''-oideae'', and tribe ''-eae''. The longer suffixes themselves suffixed with ''-eae'' must first be eliminated before recognizing an unfamiliar ''-eae'' designation as belonging to rank tribe.

Notes

References

{{Taxonomic ranks Bacterial nomenclature Tribe Plant taxonomy rank16

Rank recognition

See also

Notes

References