A botanist asks: type specimen for Homo sapiens?

[Robin Leech]

If a name was designated, e.g., Homo sapiens, but no description
given, and no specimen designated, is it not a nomen nudum?
And we cannot designate a neotype because the holotype or the
type series is not lost (because it never existed!).
I cannot imagine the social and legal aspects of selecting a
holotype for mankind.  Would it be a woman or a man?  Where
would you select a specimen from?  If from any of the western
societies, there will be massive police, legal and other problems.
Linnaeus should have designated himself.
So, the way is open to create a new genus name and a new
species name, and to select a specimen for the holotype.  It
should not be difficult to select an "average" specimen.
Robin Leech

----- Original Message -----
From: "Neal Evenhuis" <neale at BISHOPMUSEUM.ORG>
To: <TAXACOM at LISTSERV.NHM.KU.EDU>
Sent: Wednesday, June 16, 2004 7:46 PM
Subject: Re: A botanist asks: type specimen for Homo sapiens?


> >
> >      Seems to me that we have several billion extant specimens (not
> >to mention billions more buried in cemeteries), so a type specimen
> >is not really all that necessary.  If there is a species for which a
> >type is not  needed, we are it!!!  Perhaps it is best left that way.
> >          -------  Two cents worth,
> >                            Ken Kinman
>
> Just remember, Homo sapiens is just a hypothesis .... However,
> "cogito ergo sum"
>
> That aside, I'm still fond of Gary Rosenberg's posting- which makes
> all others in this thread moot. If one decides to select a lectotype,
> then we can only select from the feral forms (Linnaeus did not list
> himself among them) ...
>
> Neal Evenhuis
>