XIV 
would therefore be termed A. leucogrammes (Gmelin). In some respects, this 
view is perhaps more regardant of the spirit of binomial nomenclature , but 
it is open to grave objections. Ex. Gerris marginatus Say 1832 is a typical 
Gerris. G. marginatus Guérin (1844, described as a new species) is a Limno- 
gonus, which some authors regard as a valid genus, others as a subgenus of 
Gerris. The species is therefore termed by the latter Gerris guerini, by the former 
Limnogonus marginatus. It seems to me that stability — the prime matter of 
importance is more nearly secured by the ancient rule: ‘Once a homonym, 
always a synonym”. “Justice to first describers’’ is too much harped upon 
by some authors. The priority rule is adopted not from any idea of credit 
to first describers, who often do not deserve any, but because it admits of 
the most entirely mechanical application, thus tending to eliminate personal 
preference and to ensure stability. 
O. M. Reuter has now given his adhesion to this view’). He says, 
“when a specific name is existing simultaneously twice or several times within 
the same genus, the Jatter ones, as lacking every right, should be rejected 
for ever and replaced by others’. As a matter of fact, only a small per-— 
centage of specific names are thus open to suspicion; the chief desideratum 
now is to have types validly fixed for all genera, and to have Catalogues 
up-to-date. 
B. Nomenclature of groups of rank higher than the genus. 
14. Tribes should end in -ini, subfamilies in -inae, families in -idae, and 
_ Superfamilies in -oideac, these being suffixed to the supposed root of the 
. oldest generic name in the respective group. The tribal ending -aria, adopted by 
Stal and Reuter, is not usual in other orders and is less distinctive than -ini 3). 
My friend Reuter has cricitized this procedure of mine”), but I still 
think it the only valid method. Practically all the older genera are now 
well known, and the chance of future confusion is small. Moreover, by 
adopting Reuter’s views, one would have a family Lygaeidae which did not 
contain a genus Lygaeus, a family Cimicidae which did not contain a genus 
Cimex, and so forth. Dr. Reuter will remember the time when the Miridae 
were almost universally styled “Phytocoridae’”’, but who ever uses that name 
now? Similarly “Supericornia”’, “Infericornia”’, “Scutatina’”’ etc. were once 
universally used, but now are scarcely even referred to as Synonyms. 
C. The fixation of genotypes. 
15. The type of a genus must be one of the original species, unless — 
it can be shown that none of the original species agree with the generic 
diagnosis, ordinary errors of observation being disregarded. ! 
NB. These exceptions are very few, the most flagrant being Latreille’s — 
original type-citation for Myodocha, : 
16. If only one species is described or mentioned (if previously de-( 
scribed) at the inception of the genus, that species must be the type. 1 
') 1908 Ent. Mo. Mag. (2) XIX. 28. 
*)/ 1905 Festschr. fiir Palmén no. 1. 
*®) Breddin has recently employed -oidea for tribes. ; ; i 
vation (1907 Deutsch. E. Z. 208), J Bere ae ee 
oo 
