Re: Long-necked stegosaur, head tail mimicry?

[Tim Williams <tijawi@yahoo.com>]

Mike Keesey wrote:


> I don't have a strong opinion here, but I'd like to advance the idea
> of coining a new name. Names with rank-associated suffixes pose
> potential problems for agreement between rank-based nomenclature and
> phylogenetic nomenclature. Not to say such rank-based names should
> never be converted to clade names, but there are alternatives
> ("Euhelopoda"?).


Yes, that would work.  It's been done before (Lognkosauria, Turiasauria, 
Elasmaria, etc).  But we shouldn't have to always tip-toe around 
rank-associated suffixes (-oidea, -idae, -inae, -ini) out of fear of future 
ICZN entanglements.  Euhelopodidae is a perfectly good available name.  
Coordinated family-based taxa should be tied to their respective eponymous 
genera, not to specific phylogenetic hypotheses.  So if _Euhelopus_ gets moved 
up the sauropod tree (from outside the Neosauropoda to nested inside 
Titanosauriformes) then the Euhelopodidae should follow.


Personally, I'm in favor of abandoning ALL coordinated family-based taxon names 
(-oidea, -idae, -inae, -ini), and just adding suffixes that put all 
suprageneric taxa out of the reach of the ICZN: Euhelopoda, Brachiosauria, 
Mamenchisauria, and so on.  Then you can put one clade inside the other (and 
vice versa) without raising the ire of "The Code".  


Cheers

Tim


> 
> -- 
> T. Michael Keesey
> Technical Consultant and Developer, Internet Technologies
> Glendale, California
>