NECESSARY CHANGES IN THE NOMENCLATURE OF 



STARFISHES 



By WALTER K. FISHER. 

 OF Lelaxd Stanford Junior University 



A nuniber of generic names of starfishes are being- incorrectly 

 used. In view of the general acceptance of the International Code 

 of Nomenclature there is now no valid excuse for the retention of 

 such names as CribrcUa Agassiz, Palmipes Ag-assiz, Ctcnaster Per- 

 rier. Crciiastcr Perrier, Astcropsis Miiller and Troschel, Gymnast- 

 tria Gray, Pentaceros Schulze, Patiria Gray, and a few others listed 

 below. The case of CrihrcUa^ and of Palniipcs- has already been 

 argued, and need now only be mentioned in passing. CribrcUa 

 Agassiz, 1835, is a pure synonym of Linckia Nardo, 1834. Cribella 

 Forbes, 1841 (not of Agassiz) is antedated by Hcnricia Gray, 1840, 

 the correct name for the group of which Aster ios saiigiiiiiolciita 

 O. F. Aliiller is the type. Palmipes Agassiz, 1835, is antedated by 

 Anscropoda Nardo, 1834. The fact that Anseropoda is of mixed 

 derivation has no bearing on its tenability as the name of the genus 

 of which Aster ias placenta Pennant is type. The other cases follow.^ 



AxASTERiAS Perrier (Revision des Stellerides, 1875. '^i^- type, 

 Aiiasferias in in it ta Per. 



Leipoldt (Vettor-Pisani Asteroidea, Zeitschr. Wiss. Zool., Bd. 59, 

 1895, 570"57i) considers Aiiasterias miiiuta a synonym of Spor- 

 asterias ntgispina. Ludwig (Seesterne. Voy. S. Y. Belgica, 1903, 

 42) takes essentially the same view. Aiiasterias, being monotypic, 

 thus becomes a synonym of Sporasterias. But Ludwig, excluding 

 the type, retains the name for 5 species: A pcrricri Studer, A. stiideri 

 Perrier, and 3 new forms. Ludwig's genus is. therefore not Aiias- 



' Bell, Ann. and Alag. Xat. Hist., ser. 6, vi, 1890, 472; Fisher, The Starfishes 

 of the Hawaiian Islands. Bull. I". S. Fish Conim. for 1933, Part iii, 1906. 1089. 



" Bell, Loc. cit., VII, 1891, 233 ; Fisher, Loc. cit.. 1088. 



^ It is a pleasure to acknowledge the kindness of Dr. Theodore Gill, with 

 whom I discussed the merits of nearly all the cases mentioned in this paper. 

 In the matter of Schulze's names Dr. L. Stejneger and Mr. H. C. Oberholser 

 have also given helpful advice. I also wish to acknowledge the cooperation of 

 the Librarians of the National Museum and Philadelphia Academy of Sciences. 



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