[Taxacom] New lizard species

Francisco Welter-Schultes fwelter at gwdg.de
Mon Jun 7 05:22:23 CDT 2010


It seems to be necessary to add an explicite explanation in the 
Code's Glossary and in Art. 13.1.1 that descriptions solely based on 
differential DNA are not recognized. 

As always in such situations (when the English text seems to allow 
various interpretations), the next step is to consult the French Code 
and look for eventual specifications there. 

Art. 13.1.1: être accompagné d'une description ou d'une définition 
qui énonce les caractères permettant de différencier le taxon,

caractère, s. m. Élément descriptif d'organismes utilisé pour 
décrire, classifier ou différencier des taxons.

So in the French Code the debatable term "attribute" is avoided, and 
the idea that the character must be a descriptive element of the 
organism itself is expressed even more clearly than in the English 
Code. "Colour different from species B" or "DNA different from 
species B" are not descriptive elements. In cases of doubts, you 
can regard the French Code as decisive.

Francisco
University of Goettingen, Germany
www.animalbase.org




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