“Life histories” is a more appropriate term than “ecotypes” to
describe ocean- and stream-maturing Pacific lamprey Entosphenus
tridentatus
Abstract
The scientific literature includes a plethora of terms to denote
within-species phenotypic diversity (e.g., morphotypes; ecotypes;
ecomorphotypes; ecophenotypes; polymorphisms; and life histories). Here
we discuss a particular situation in which different terms (ecotypes and
life histories) have been used to describe the same within-species
diversity of adult Pacific lamprey Entosphenus tridentatus, note an
important challenge in using “ecotypes”, and conclude with a
recommendation to use “life histories” to describe the ocean- and
stream-maturing forms of Pacific lamprey.