Phylotype

In embryology phylotype refers to the concept that there is a conserved stage during embryogenesis (the phylotypic stage), during which the developing embryos of species of the same phylum appear to be similar.

In taxonomy, phylotype refers to an observed similarity that classifies a group of organisms by their phenetic relationship. This phenetic similarity, particularly in the case of asexual organisms, may reflect the evolutionary relationships. The term is rank-neutral, thus one can choose the rank at which the phylotype is described, e.g. species, class, 97% genetic similarity or homology. The term is often used in microbiology since the genomes of prokaryotes do not lend themselves to classification via Linnean taxonomy as easily as do many eukaryotes such as plant and animals.