Re: Gastropteron rubrum or G. meckeli

September 6, 2001
From: Bill Rudman

Concerning the comments by Erwin Koehler and Lucas Cervera about whether Gastropteron rubrum has priority over Gastropteron meckeli.

I have always followed Fischer (1910) in considering Gastropteron rubrum to be the earliest available name as do most authors who have worked on the group [Marcus & Marcus, Gosliner, Baba, etc]. Fischer considers that the author of the name Gastropteron was Kosse, not Meckel in Kosse, and that no type species was proposed in the original description. He writes:
"Many authors (Philippi, delle Chiaje, H.& A. Adams, Chenu etc) attribute to Kosse the authorship of the species epithet meckelii. This is a manifest error, since Kosse did not give specific names to his new molluscs" ... Fischer, 1910 p.351. - [translated from French by W.B.Rudman]

According to Fischer, the first type species designation for Gastropteron was Ferussac, 1822, who introduced the name Gasteropteron coccinea. The first use of Gastroptera meckeli was Blainville, 1825. However in the intervening period, Rafinesque (1814) had described the same species as Sarcopterus ruber which according to Fischer becomes the earliest species name.

My problem is that I do not have access to Kosse, 1813. If that does not include a recognisable description of G. meckeli then Gastropteron rubrum is the name we should use.

Another problem is the spelling of the name. Blainville (1825) uses Gasteroptera and Ferussac (1822) uses Gasteropteron which is the spelling in the Check List of European Marine Mollusca (CLEMAM) and they attribute authorship to Meckel in Kosse, 1813 and give the type species as Gasteropteron meckeli Kosse, 1813.

While checklists are very valuable, they often give no reasons for nomenclatural decisions they are introducing, and don't give references to published decisions they are relying on.

References:
• Blainville, H. M. D. 1825, Manuel de malacologie et de conchyliologie, vii + 647 pp. Leurault, Paris [Atlas of Plates (1-87) published 1827].
• Ferussac, A,. 1822. Tableaux systematiques des animaux mollusques, classes en familles naturelles, dans lesquels ou est etabli la concordance de tous les systemes. Suivis d'un Prodrome General. xlvii + 110pp.
• Fischer, P. 1910. Observations sur la synonymie et l'habitat du Gastropteron rubrum Rafinesque. Journal de Conchyliologie, 30(4): 349-353.
• Kosse, J.F.J., 1813. De Pteropodum ordine et nova ipsius Genera. p10-16, figs 11-14. Thesis: Halle
• Rafinesque, C. S., 1814. Quadro dei generi di Moll. pteropodi dei Signore Peron e Lesueur, dal Signor C. S. Rafinesque Schmaltz. Specchio delle scienze, Giornale Encyclopedico de Sicilia Palermo, 2(11):153-154.
• Rafinesque, C. S., 1814. Precis des decouvertes somiologiques ou zoologiques et botaniques, p. 30. Palermo

It seems this matter will only be resolved if someone can look at a copy of Kosse and see exactly what is written there. Basically, did Kosse actually describe or even use the name G. meckeli in 1813, and how did he spell the name Gastropteron?

Best wishes,
Bill Rudman

Rudman, W.B., 2001 (Sep 6) Re: Gastropteron rubrum or G. meckeli. [Message in] Sea Slug Forum. Australian Museum, Sydney. Available from http://www.seaslugforum.net/find/5215

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