Dear Stephanie I'm looking for a G.A.Clark from Australia, who collected in 1990 some snails near a limestone cave, 40 km North of Brastagi (Sumatra, Indonesia). I like to contact him or her. I was also at a limestone cave near Brastagi and i wonder if this is the same locality. Last year a small paper is published in Basteria with descriptions of three new species from this place, a new paper is almost ready with descriptions of more species. Maby you or somebody else could help me. Greetings, Wim > -----Oorspronkelijk bericht----- > Van: Stephanie Clark [SMTP:[log in to unmask]] > Verzonden: donderdag 20 juli 2000 18:58 > Aan: [log in to unmask] > Onderwerp: Re: use of unpublished names > > Andrew S and others > > As has already been mentioned it is very unwise to use an unpublished name > when referring to a potentially undescribed species. For several reasons - > amongst which is there is now a record of the name you mentioned on the > internet and which other people can now find and technically cite. It is > also not wise to mention the unpublished name because you could > accidentally provide enough information about the specimen in a > newsletter, > newspaper, etc for it to become a valid name. Now this can cause some > major > problems especially for the person who was originally thinking of > describing the species that you have now become the official author of > etc. > > Another reason not to refer to an unpublished name is that the person who > originally thought the shell was different may have changed their mind on > getting additional specimens and taking into consideration other factors > such as reproductive anatomy, radular morphology, protoconch morphology, > opercular morphology, egg capsule morphology, breeding behaviour, allozyme > data (proteins, enzyme data), DNA data etc. (Which I might add > particularly > for most supposed new species of Cones, Cowries and Volutes virtually none > of the above are used to justify the new species this especially goes for > reproductive anatomy and genetic data.) (Just to back this up a little of > the 1600 papers dealing with molluscan allozymes (proteins) I have found > while doing my Masters and PhD none mention Cones, Volutes or Cowries > which > are the most popular shells collected.) > > The best way to refer to a shell which you or others thinks is new is by > saying something like the following: Cypraea sp A. or Cypraea sp 210 or > Cypraea sp nov from Port Lincoln or Cypraea gold form SA etc. > > By referring to the shell in some way like the above the shell has some > sort of tag to suggest that it might be new or different in some way, but > prevents you or some one else from inadvertently making the name > scientifically available before the original author had planned to. > > So I hope the above makes it a bit more clearer as to some of the reasons > you should not mention an unpublished name. > > > Stephanie (who should be doing PhD stuff) > > > ************************************************************************** > **** > Stephanie A. Clark > > Invertebrate Identification > Unit 4/17 Morris Street > PO Box 418 > Summer Hill, NSW 2130 > Australia > > phone 61 (02) 9799 5689 fax 61 (02) 9799 5610 mobile 0412 372388 > email [log in to unmask]