Taxacom: demystifying gender agreement, was Re: Removals, of offending scientific names

[Leslie Watling]

Doug,
I would have no objection to having a list that I could go to  "that tells
you *instantly and definitively* what gender a
genus is, and another list that tells you whether or not an epithet is
subject to changes in spelling (and what those changes are)."

The problem is this: none of what you describe for insects exists for most
marine invertebrate groups. While there is a comprehensive list of accepted
names in WoRMS (World Register of Marine Species) there is nothing in that
list to indicate gender of the genera included.

So, for me personally, at 77 years of age, and with only a few years of
work left, fussing with gender is a monumental pain. Generally I have tried
to guess based on the construction of the name and the endings used for
other species in the genus, but that is it.

I might also add, that while I have described a lot of marine taxa,
taxonomy is not my primary field, but is one that I enjoy and is needed
(i.e., no one else will do it) but time spent chasing down small details is
time not spent getting other things done.

Maybe the solution is to have a panel of knowledgeable volunteers who could
receive the proposal for the new name and advise on the correct
construction. The Biological Society of Washington long ago had an Editor
who played just that role. Was very helpful. But there are a lot of people
describing new names these days for them all to be checked, I suspect.

Best,
Les





On 6/26/23 8:08 AM, Leslie Watling via Taxacom wrote:
> So, I may take a wee bit of offense at the suggestion that my taxonomic
> work is suspect because I don't want to spend months figuring out the
> gender agreement for a new species I would like to describe.

Les, the point you raise here is a "straw man".

What I and others are saying is that we advocate that there be a list
you consult that tells you *instantly and definitively* what gender a
genus is, and another list that tells you whether or not an epithet is
subject to changes in spelling (and what those changes are).

We are VERY explicitly saying that a system that forces taxonomists to
PERSONALLY research names is a*bad system*. At the *absolute most*, the
only research a taxonomist should be required to do is consult a copy of
an original description. You are right to complain about a system that
compels you to learn Latin and Greek linguistics, but that is
emphatically NOT the system we are talking about here. We can keep
gender agreement and eliminate the "months figuring out" part. There is
nothing inherent in gender agreement that would necessitate you or
anyone else wasting time this way.

*If you never in your life had to personally research the linguistic
properties of names again, would you be willing to continue using gender
agreement?*

THAT is the question we are asking, not "What do you hate about the
present system?". We KNOW what you hate about the present system - we
are ALL annoyed by it, for the same reason. The best solution to a
system that involves an objectionable practice is to *remove the
objectionable **practice*, not to abandon the system.

Sincerely,

--
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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   "There are some enterprises in which a careful disorderliness
         is the true method" - Herman Melville, Moby Dick, Chap. 82
Les Watling
Professor Emeritus
School of Life Sciences
University of Hawaii

Professor Emeritus
School of Marine Sciences
University of Maine