THE GENERIC NAMES BLANKAARTIA OUDEMANS, 
1911, AND TROMBICULOIDES JACOT, 1938 
(ACARI : TROMBICULIDAE) 1 
By H. S. Fuller 2 and G. W. Wharton 3 
The generic names of trombiculid mites have been studied 
recently by several acarologists. Two of the genera have 
been based on specimens that were incorrectly identified, 
so that they fall in the category of genera based on mis- 
identified genotypes. The question of what to do concern- 
ing these names was referred to Mr. Francis Hemming, 
Secretary of the International Commission on Zoological 
Nomenclature. In a letter, he indicated that the concluding 
portion of Opinion 168 (namely, the portion which states 
that, where a genus is considered by specialists to be based 
on a misidentified type species, that name is to be regarded 
as of doubtful status pending a definite ruling being given 
by the Commission in the light of data submitted to it by 
interested specialists) will be omitted from the revision 
of the rules of zoological nomenclature in which the opinions 
will be incorporated with the rules. It is therefore neces- 
sary either to apply the principle established in Opinion 168 
that designations of type species for genera must stand, or 
to refer the case to the Commission for use of their plenary 
powers to suspend the rules. Since the Commission can use 
its plenary powers only when strict application of the rules 
will result in greater confusion than uniformity, the type 
designations for the genera Blankaartia and Trombiculoides 
must be accepted. 
Oudemans, 1911, designated Trombidium niloticum Tra- 
gardh, 1904, as type of a new genus Blankaartia (Ent. 
1 Done both at Harvard University and Duke University in connection 
with research supported by grants-in-aid from the Division of Research 
Grants and Fellowships of the National Institutes of Health, U. S. Public 
Health Service. 
2 Department of Microbiology, Harvard University School of Public 
Health. 
3 Department of Zoology, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina. 
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