User blog:SilverTiger12/A Review of Dracoform Taxonomy

Note: This page is a work in process and is in no way, shape, or form complete or finalized. Significant changes may be made as new information comes to light.

The dragons and their kindred species are among the most innately magical and biologically complex creatures of the Material plane, but their reclusiveness and, in the case of many species, rarity, has prevented any major taxonomic work on the group. This article seeks to rectify that by examining the internal taxonomic relations of the dragonkind. Undead dragons are not treated here, as they are by their nature not independent species at all but non-living things created from the bodies of other species. This article also relies more on environmental, magical, and otherwise biological similarities and affinities than on any supposed lines of evolutionary descent for its organization.

Systemic Taxonomy
Kingdom: Animalia

Phylum: Chordata

Class: Dracoformes

Dracoformes is the class that encompasses all true dragons and a number of other, related species. Physiological characteristics apparently include warm-bloodedness (probably homeothermic), scaly skin, and oviparity, among others.

Internal Systematics
Order: Dracomorpha - the true dragons.
 * Family: Draconidae - the classical dragons
 * Subfamily: Chrominae - the chromatic dragons
 * Species included - red dragon, blue dragon, black dragon, brown dragon, gray dragon, green dragon, purple dragon, pink dragon, yellow dragon, white dragon
 * Subfamily: Metallinae - the metallic dragons
 * Tribe: Metallini
 * Species included - gold dragon, silver dragon, brass dragon, bronze dragon, copper dragon, song dragon, steel dragon, electrum dragon, mithril dragon, mercury dragon, orium dragon
 * Tribe: Ferrini - the ferrous dragons
 * Ferrodraco ferrotyran, the iron dragon
 * Ferrodraco tyrancaeruleum, the cobalt dragon
 * Ferrodraco ferrovindex, the tungesten dragon
 * Ferrodraco lucetglacies, the chrome dragon
 * Ferrodraco tenacitus, the nickel dragon
 * Subfamily: Geminae - the gem dragons
 * Genus: Psigeminus
 * Psigeminus aleithilos, the amethyst dragon
 * Psigeminus smargadus, the emerald dragon
 * Psigeminus hrodelus, the crystal dragon
 * Psigeminus charismos, the sapphire dragon
 * Psigeminus tithonnas, the topaz dragon
 * Psigeminus seradessus, the obsidian dragon
 * Psigeminus seimos, the beljuril dragon
 * Genus: Semigeminus
 * Semigeminus rarus, the jacinth dragon
 * Semigeminus jadus, the jade dragon
 * Semigeminus lunethros, the moonstone dragon
 * Semigeminus clarainimicus, the pearl dragon
 * Semigeminus silvectri, the amber dragon
 * Family: Karadraconidae - the lung dragons. It must be noted that the yu lung is not a separate species, but instead the common word for the larval form of the different lung species.
 * Genus: Orienlung
 * Orienlung pan, the pan lung
 * Orienlung shen, the shen lung
 * Orienlung tien, the t'ien lung
 * Orienlung chiang, the chiang lung
 * Orienlung tunmi, the tun mi lung
 * Genus: Orienryo
 * Orienryo wang, the lung wang
 * Genus: Orientatsu
 * Orientatsu li, the li lung
 * Family: Xenodraconidae - the planar dragons
 * Subfamily: Potamidrakinae
 * Species included - Oceanus dragon, Styx dragon
 * Family: Potendraconidae
 * Subfamily: Potendraconinae - the epic dragons
 * Genus: Potentata
 * Potentata prismata, the prismatic dragon
 * Potentata diamanta, the force dragon
 * Genus: Tempora
 * Tempora tempora, the time dragon
 * Subfamily: Arcanadracinae - the arcane dragons
 * Genus: Arcanadraco
 * Arcanadraco libro, the tome dragon
 * Genus: Maledicimus
 * Maledicimus vindicto, the hex dragon
 * Family: Phlogisdraconidae - the spelljamming dragons
 * Species included - radiant dragon, sun dragon, moon dragon, stellar dragon
 * Family: Dzalmidae
 * Genus: Dzalmaus
 * Dzalmaus dzalmus, the dzalmus
 * Family: Rattelyridae
 * Genus: Rattelyrus
 * Rattelyrus rattelyr, the rattelyr dragon
 * Family: Tempesdraconidae - the catastrophic dragons

Order: Pseudodracomorpha - the false dragons. Includes dragonets, wyverns, wyrms, and drakes.
 * Family: Microdraconidae - the dragonets
 * Clade: The "true" dragonets - crow's-nest dragon, draken, geyser dragon, pavilion dragon, mole dragon, faerie dragon, pseudodragon
 * Clade: The lesser or familiar drakes - crystal drake, demon drake, faerie drake, shadow drake
 * Family: Pseudodraconidae
 * Subfamily: Macropseudodraconinae
 * Species included - wyvern, velroc
 * Subfamily: Micropseudodraconinae
 * Clade: greater drakes (~10 species)
 * Clade: elemental drakes (including black firedrake)
 * Clade: felldrakes
 * Clade: mind drake
 * Clade: space drake
 * Clade: ambush drake, rage drake
 * Clade: portal drake, scalamagdrion
 * Clade: vishap, hatori
 * Clade: liondrake, vulture drake, others

Order: Dracohemos - the dragonblooded (kobolds, dragonspawn, and dragonborn)
 * Family: Microdraconiformidae
 * Genus: Koboldia
 * Koboldia koboldia, the common kobold
 * Koboldia urdia, the urd
 * Genus: Abeiria
 * Abeiria strixiki, the dragonborn
 * Family: Dinodraconiformidae - dragonspawn

Order: Chelodracos - the dragon turtles
 * Family: Chelodracidae
 * Genus: Chelodraco
 * Chelodraco chelodraco, the dragon turtle
 * Chelodraco testudo, the dragon tortoise

Order: Linnormorpha - the linnorms
 * Family: Linnormae
 * Genus:
 * Species included - flame linnorm, frost linnorm, forest linnorm, land linnorm, corpse tearer, rain linnorm, gray linnorm
 * Genus:
 * Species included - sea linnorm
 * Genus:
 * Species included - dread linnorm
 * Genus:
 * Species included - Stygian linnorm

Side notes: the greaters drakes, elemental drakes, and felldrakes all form monophyletic clades within themselves, but probably not with each other or even with other drakes. The word "drake", in fact, seems to be more of a catch-all term for anything small and draconic.