TOWARDS A NEW PERSPECTIVE IN PROTOZOAN EVOLUTION

in other biological disciplines, in protozoology the field of phylogen etically oriented systematics is currently experiencing a Vital popula rity. This is not only caused by the discovery of new species with att ributes or features of missing links or by the elaboration of ultrastr uctural and molecular features of little-known protozoa during the las t 20 years, but mainly by the recent establishment of new quantitative approaches and methods of classification and of phylogeny reconstruct ion. Among them, the concepts of cladistic taxonomy appear most notabl e. They allow us to differentiate between homologous characters develo ped in different historical horizons and to evaluate their impact on t he development of new strategies.