Systematists aid in the efficient discovery of medicinal drugs from plants because they can use their knowledge of evolutionary relationships to guide chemists in choosing the best species to test. Systematists often serve as consultants to poison-control centers of local hospitals because doctors need immediate, correct identifications of mushrooms, snakes, and other potentially poisonous plants or animals. Because the task of classifying plants and animals is so monumental, Systematists have made significant use of computers to help store information so that it is easily retrievable. For example, a plant physiologist may wish to know if there is a change of leaf size or shape in a particular species of plant with a change in growth conditions. A water-quality worker may wish to know what species of algae or fishes are present in a particular lake or river and where they are distributed in it.
Systematists are able to answer such questions.
The realization that the great continents as we now know them were once part of a single gigantic land mass and have gradually drifted apart over the millennia has forced Systematists to rethink earlier work on biogeography. Chemical taxonomy not only provides more data for the Systematist, but also can help to determine the parents of suspected plant and animal hybrids. With the SEM, new features of organisms are revealed in dramatic, 3-dimensional detail. The comparative study of behavioral patterns of different species also provides new insights into the recognition and possible origins of species. Electronic analysis of the calls of frogs, cicadas, and other animals has offered an entirely new way to identify species and to study mechanisms of their evolution.