The thread which my original posting (Taxonomy Question) generated seems to have evolved into a discourse on the number of characters (reference here to printed letters, not personalities of contributors) required to constitute "different" - a question with a seemingly obvious answer, and no bearing whatsoever on my original question, which still lacks a direct reply. To restate the original question: Is it allowable to form a new genus name simply by altering the GENDER of an existing name? Given that we already have Cancellaria, can a new genus be called Cancellarius? Changing Cancellaria to Cancelloria or Concellaria, or Cancelaria forms a new word (albeit a meaningless one); but changing Cancellaria to Cancellarius, it seems to me, does not. It is still the same word, simply reclassified in terms of gender. Any further opinion on this? And, if such transgendering of existing names is not a legitimate method of forming new names, what about the existing names Nassarius and Nassaria? Paul M.