Dear Harry, Tom and fellow bibliophiles,

I'm confused.  I've been told this before.  In trying to compile
information of type species for unionids I have come across a vexing
problem related to the authorship of many taxa variously attributed to
Sowerby or Reeve, or Sowerby in Reeve.  It stems for the publication:
1864-1868.  L. Reeve and G.B. Sowerby (eds.) Conchologica Iconica,
Monograph of the genus Unio.  Vol. 16 unpaginated + 96 plates.  I have no
idea as to how to cite this work and how to attribute various species to
their rightful authors.  Not actually having a real copy  (xerox only) of
this fine work, as far as I can tell (and I could be very far off here and
please correct me if I am wrong) the Conchologica Iconica was issued in
numerous (??) volumes over a period of many years and apparently authored
by one or more people (Sowerby or Reeve or both).  My questions are as
follows:

1.   How can I tell who the author of a particular taxon is (they are not
attributed in the species accounts)?  One example is Unio aplatus (species.
This taxon was attribited to "Swainson MS in Museum Cuming" in the original
work and in the index.  Later Simpson (1900) and Johnson (1971:79) credited
Reeve as the author.  According to Parodiz (1968) it was Sowerby in Reeve
1865.  I realize that Swainson can't be the author as whoever the author is
was citing and unpublished manuscript, but how can I tell who the real
author of this name is?

2.  How can I tell the date of publication?  This sounds fairly
straightforward.  However, the first page of the "Monograph of the genus
Unio" is dated "October 1868" at the bottom of the unpaginated page,
whereas two pages later it is dated "August 1864".  The dates progress
forward until ending with "October 1868".  I assume that this work was
issued in parts and then compiled and issued as one volume, which might
account for the introduction page being dated the same as the last page.
Hell, I don't know.

3.  Do the plates preceed the unpaginated pages citing them in an original
bound copy?

4.  How does one cite this work?  If issued in parts over a period of
years, each "part" would need it's own citation.  How does one know the
correct author of each part? How is each volume cited? How is the entire
series cited?

I assume others have had similar problems in dealing with the nomenclature
of marine or terrestrial species in the Concholoogica Iconica and your help
in this matter may save me a long and ultimately painful date with Jim
Beam.  Later we will address Martini und Chemnitz and the relationship
between K=FCster, H.C., and S. Clessin  various dates 1838-1842, 1853,
1873-1876, the Systematisches Conchylien-Cabinet, and I am getting confused
again.

Kevin
Kevin S. Cummings
Research Scientist
Illinois Natural History Survey
607 E. Peabody Drive
Champaign, IL 61820
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http://www.inhs.uiuc.edu/cbd/collections/mollusk.html