[Coral-List] Name changes

[Dennis Hubbard]

Thanks Daphne.

As a general note to the group, I'm still not sure how to cite *M. faveolata
*. While I hold all the folks on the taxonomy paper as "experts", what
happens when someone does not. The bottom line for me is that I often refer
to M. faveolata in papers. How do I handle this in future papers?

We went through this with (I believe) *Agaricia tenufolia* awhile back and
I still see it cited multiple ways; someone outside the inner circle may
think we're talking about three different corals. So, it strikes me that
the lack of a formal "naming" process requiring consensus may be creating
as great a confusion as disagreements over genetic versus morphologic data
vs personal preference. Maybe geologists have an authoritarian streak in
us, but we generally frown on folks changing the Holocene to the Imobscene
just because we're fed up with *Homo stupidus*.

Dennis


On Thu, Sep 12, 2013 at 2:35 PM, Fautin, Daphne G. <fautin at ku.edu> wrote:

> ICZN does not "accept" names.  ICZN, as its name states, deals with
> nomenclature.  It makes the rules about how to form a name, which name
> should be used in the case of identical names (homonyms), which name should
> be used if two names are considered to apply to the same taxon (synonyms),
> etc.  If the rules of nomenclature are followed, the ICZN has been
> satisfied. Whether two names really are synonyms is a matter of taxonomy
> (not nomenclature) and it is the judgment of the expert community that
> prevails.
>
>
> Daphne (a Commissioner of the ICZN)
>
> Daphne G. Fautin
> Professor, Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
> Curator, Natural History Museum (Biodiversity Institute)
> University of Kansas
> 1200 Sunnyside Avenue
> Lawrence, Kansas 66045 USA
>
> telephone 1-785-864-3062
> fax 1-785-864-5321
> skype user name daphne.fautin
> evo user name fautin
> website: invertebratezoology.biodiversity.ku.edu/home
> cv: www.nhm.ku.edu/inverts/daphne.html
>
>     database of hexacorals, including sea anemones
>        newest version released 2 January 2013
> hercules.kgs.ku.edu/Hexacoral/Anemone2/index.cfm
>
> ________________________________________
> From: coral-list-bounces at coral.aoml.noaa.gov [
> coral-list-bounces at coral.aoml.noaa.gov] on behalf of Dennis Hubbard [
> dennis.hubbard at oberlin.edu]
> Sent: Thursday, September 12, 2013 12:01 PM
> To: coral-list at coral.aoml.noaa.gov
> Subject: [Coral-List] Name changes
>
> Hi all:
>
> I looked over Nancy's interesting article and the data appear to be pretty
> compelling. However, being a geologist and not a coral taxonomist, my
> question is whether the ICZN (or whoever the official body is) has accepted
> these name changes yet. If not, how is this typically dealt with in the
> literature? As M. faveolata is a highly preferred lab rat for paleoclimate
> studies, it's probably important that we follow the rules before we start
> tossing new names about. If this hasn't yet happened, what is the protocol
> for referring to this and other species that may now sit in new bins?
>
> Thanks,
>
> Dennis
> --
> Dennis Hubbard
> Chair, Dept of Geology-Oberlin College Oberlin OH 44074
> (440) 775-8346
>
> * "When you get on the wrong train.... every stop is the wrong stop"*
>  Benjamin Stein: "*Ludes, A Ballad of the Drug and the Dream*"
> _______________________________________________
> Coral-List mailing list
> Coral-List at coral.aoml.noaa.gov
> http://coral.aoml.noaa.gov/mailman/listinfo/coral-list
>
>
>


-- 
Dennis Hubbard
Chair, Dept of Geology-Oberlin College Oberlin OH 44074
(440) 775-8346

* "When you get on the wrong train.... every stop is the wrong stop"*
 Benjamin Stein: "*Ludes, A Ballad of the Drug and the Dream*"