Taxacom: nomen nudum and synonymy question

[John Grehan]

OK Doug, I think I get the rationale. Misspellings have been identified in
my taxon (as in Nielsen et al) as 'synonyms' but I understand that they and
infrasubspecies names fall outside Code regulations. Since
misspellings were included in the past I will retain them now (and due to
all the work that went into verifying every darned one of them).

John

On Fri, Jan 27, 2023 at 1:26 PM Douglas Yanega via Taxacom <
taxacom at lists.ku.edu> wrote:

> On 1/27/23 9:56 AM, John Grehan via Taxacom wrote:
> > Thanks Doug and Adam for the latest comments. In my list I (and
> colleagues)
> > will generally not use abbreviations. As this article is purely digital
> > (and open access) there are no space constraints.
> >
> > With respect to the definition (thanks) that "*synonym*, *n*. Each of two
> > or more names of the same rank used to denote the same taxonomic taxon."
> -
> > would I be correct to understand from this that an infrasubspecific name
> > such as an aberration cannot be considered a synonym?
>
> The use of "rank" in the Code is not Linnaean rank - there are three
> ranks in the Code: family-rank, genus-rank, and species-rank.
>
> The Code ranking system does not distinguish (e.g.) between family and
> superfamily or subfamily or tribe, or genus and subgenus, or species and
> subspecies. Your question regarding infrasubspecific names is actually a
> good one, however. I suppose the best answer I can give is the the ICZN
> might *not* technically classify it as a synonym, because it is
> unregulated and not strictly speaking of any rank at all. However, to a
> taxonomist, I suppose "synonym" could be taken as whatever they want it
> to be, because the Code does not regulate taxonomic decisions - and, as
> long as they communicate themselves to other taxonomists as to how they
> use the term.
>
> As a somewhat parallel thing, anyone who spends time reading taxonomic
> articles in Wikipedia will note that what appear as "synonyms" under
> various names can include things like emendations, misspellings,
> infrasubspecific names, and even valid sub-taxa (e.g., a subspecies can
> appear as a "synonym" of the species it belongs to). Not everyone uses
> the term "synonym" as the Code defines it.
>
> > With respect to:
> >
> > Article 45.6.4. it is subspecific if first published before 1961 and its
> > author expressly used one of the terms ``variety" or "form" (including
> use
> > of the terms "var.", "forma", "v." and "f."), unless its author also
> > expressly gave it infrasubspecific rank, or the content of the work
> > unambiguously reveals that the name was proposed for an infrasubspecific
> > entity, in which case it is infrasubspecific (our emphasis).
> >
> > I take that to mean that subspecific names (or inferred before 1961 by
> var
> > forma v and f) are considered to have the same rank as species and
> > therefore qualify as synonyms?
> >
> > Sorry to gnaw over these details. Neve would have made a lawyer.
>
> As noted above, species and subspecies are of the same rank, as the Code
> defines rank. It takes a little getting used to. ;-)
>
> Peace.
>
> --
> Doug Yanega      Dept. of Entomology       Entomology Research Museum
> Univ. of California, Riverside, CA 92521-0314     skype: dyanega
> phone: (951) 827-4315 (disclaimer: opinions are mine, not UCR's)
>
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