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Zoology Publications from Victoria University of Wellington—Nos. 33 and 34

Nomenclature

Nomenclature

Opinion 44 (1912) of the International Rules of Zoological Nomenclature recognised Leptocephalus Gronovius, 1763, as the genus for conger eels since the larval specimen described by this author as L. morrisii was indeed a young conger. This action was reversed by Opinion 93 (1926) when Conger Cuvier, 1817 (deleted in 1958, and Conger Oken, 1817, replaced) was designated as the official name for conger eels and Leptocephalus reserved for the larval form. While a number of attempts have been made to group larval eels into various genera and subgenera, the present author follows the simple course of referring all species to the genus Leptocephalus. In naming leptocephali it has often been the practice to use the clumsy genitive form for leptocephali whose adults are known—e.g., Leptocephalus Anguillae marmoratae. The author proposes to follow Bruun (1937, p. 1) indicating a given form by the nominative—e.g., Leptocephalus Anguilla marmorata or more simply L. Anguilla marmorata.