So much for nomenclatural stability

[Paul Kirk]

Here is an example of an attempt to make the name of a fungus morally acceptable/correct.

The well know fungus genus Phallus Junius ex L. 1753 (the common stikhorn is Phallus impudicus) is so named for obvious reasons. In 1818 the american botanist Amos Eaton published the genus Morellus to replace Phallus with the diagnosis, if I recall correctly, 'A substitute for a vile name' - nomenclatural stability was preserved and the name was declared superfluous (illegitimate) when the ICBN arrived.

Paul

Paul M. Kirk
CABI Bioscience UK

-----Original Message-----
From: veldkamp
To: TAXACOM at LISTSERV.NHM.KU.EDU
Sent: 09/03/05 13:05
Subject: Re: [TAXACOM] So much for nomenclatural stability

Both the ICBN and the ICZN stress their independence from each other,
but
not from any particular country's legal system. They state that a name
may
be coined any way its author pleases. Moreover, Art. 51 of the ICBN
states
that a name is not to be rejected if it is inappropriate or
disagreeable,
or when an other is preferable. No doubt the ICZN has a similar
statement.

I'd like to see how any government will be able to force the Zoological
or
Botanical Congresses to adopt a name that displeases them for rejection.
My
guess is that these meetings will become quite mutinous and contrary and
will reject any such proposal just on principle. It would be an
interesting
spectacle to see how any judge would be able to force the Codes to
include
such an entry!

A previous attempt to make a plant name politically correct is the
change
of the lauraceous Phoebe formosana (Hayata) Hayata to Phoebe taiwaniana
Hayata by the anonymous committee that published the series Iconographia
cormophytorum sinicorum 1 (1972) 830, t. 1659. Note the retention of the
authorship!

This nomen politicum is not even mentioned as a synonym in the
subsequent
Flora reipublicae popularis sinicae 31 (1982) 115.

I haven't heard of any proposal by the Selby Botanical Garden to propose
Phragmipedium kovachii for rejection. See
http://persoon.si.edu/codes/props/index.cfm which keeps track of such
things.

JeF