Scientific names and taxonomy

Separate nomenclature from taxonomy

Whereas vernacular common names shift from language to language and region to region—a single widespread plant or bird may go by half a dozen local names—scientific names anchor biodiversity records across borders. To read them clearly, separate two partner disciplines: nomenclature and taxonomy. Nomenclature is the legalistic system of international codes (distinct for animals, for algae/fungi/plants, and for prokaryotes) that governs how names are validly published, spelled, and prioritized by date. Taxonomy is the empirical science of delimiting species boundaries and grouping organisms by evolutionary relationship. A name can be nomenclaturally valid while taxonomists debate how to classify the species. [1][4]

• Nomenclature sets the formal rules for publishing and prioritizing names; taxonomy is the scientific hypothesis of how organisms relate.
• Separate international codes govern animals (ICZN) versus plants, fungi, and algae (ICN), so formatting details differ slightly across kingdoms.
• Common names are great for conversation, but pairing them with a scientific binomial prevents confusion across regions.

Read the binomial carefully

Every species-level scientific name is a two-part Latinized binomial: the capitalized genus name followed by the lowercase specific epithet, both set in italics (or underlined in handwritten field notebooks), such as Quercus alba for white oak or Ursus arctos for brown bear. The specific epithet never stands alone; you can abbreviate the genus to its initial (Q. alba) only after spelling it out in the same passage. In technical checklists and monographs, the binomial is followed by the surname of the author who first validly published the name, and parentheses around that author indicate the species has since been moved to a different genus. [1][5]

• Always capitalize the genus name, keep the specific epithet lowercase, and italicize (or underline in field notes) both words.
• Never write a bare specific epithet by itself—always include the full genus name or its unambiguous single-letter abbreviation.
• Parentheses around the describing author's name mean the species was originally placed in another genus and later transferred.

Expect accepted names and synonyms

When a familiar wildflower, mushroom, or warbler suddenly appears under a new genus in your field app, the system is not broken—taxonomy is updating to reflect new DNA phylogenies and morphological evidence. When two scientists independently describe the same species at different times, or when a species is transferred to a more accurate genus, checklists designate one current name as the accepted (or valid) name and link the older names as synonyms. Because decades of museum labels, regional floras, and older citizen-science records still use those synonyms, searching both the current accepted binomial and major historical synonyms is essential when compiling local data. [2][3][6]

• A taxonomic synonym is an alternative scientific name that refers to the same taxon, often from an earlier genus placement or duplicate description.
• Field check: when cross-referencing an older printed flora or bird guide, look up historical synonyms in ITIS, Catalogue of Life, or GBIF.
• Taxonomic splits divide one broadly defined species into two or more narrower ones, making old records ambiguous without location or specimen details.

Cite the authority and version

Because taxonomic classifications are testable scientific hypotheses, two respected checklists can temporarily disagree on whether a population is a subspecies or a full species, or which genus boundary to adopt. Whenever you build a species list for a BioBlitz, park survey, or long-term field journal, record which taxonomic authority or backbone—such as the Catalogue of Life, the Integrated Taxonomic Information System (ITIS), GBIF, or a society checklist—you followed, along with the date or version year. Keeping the exact name originally logged alongside the accepted name and authority identifier ensures your field records remain interpretable through future revisions. [1][2][3][6]

• State the taxonomic checklist authority and access year whenever publishing a park, yard, or BioBlitz species list.
• Preserve the verbatim name recorded at the time of observation alongside the currently mapped accepted name.
• Use stable taxonomic identifiers (such as ITIS TSN or Catalogue of Life IDs) when managing spreadsheets across multiple seasons.

Related guides

• Using a dichotomous key
• Making useful citizen-science records
• The IUCN Red List: categories explained