Gymnophlaea gracilis G.Martens, nom. illeg. 1868
Publication Details
Gymnophlaea gracilis G.Martens, nom. illeg. 1868: 88, 146
Published in: Martens, G. von (1868 '1866'). Die Tange. Die Preussische Expedition nach Ost-Asien. Nach amtlichen Quellen. Botanischer Theil. pp. 1-152, pls I-VII. Berlin: Verlag de Königlichen Geheimen Ober-Hofbuchdruckerei (R.Y. Decker).
Request PDFType Species
A type species for this genus does not appear to have been designated.
Status of Name
This name is currently regarded as a synonym of Dermonema virens (J.Agardh) Pedroche & Ávila Ortíz.
Source of Synonymy
Silva, P.C., Basson, P.W. & Moe, R.L. (1996). Catalogue of the benthic marine algae of the Indian Ocean. University of California Publications in Botany 79: [i]-xiv, 1-1259.
Basionym
Gymnophlaea gracilis Kützing
Type Information
Type locality: Pointe de Galle, Ceylon (Sri Lanka); (Millar & Prud'homme van Reine 2005: 541) Type: L; 939,69-914 (barcode L 0194033) (Millar & Prud'homme van Reine 2005: 541) Notes: Millar & Prud'homme van Reine note that Kützing illustrated this specimen, which he used for fig. 1a, but it is not from New Caledonia as stated in the protologue, but from Pointe de Galle, Ceylon.
Origin of Species Name
Adjective (Latin), thin, slender (Stearn 1983).
General Environment
This is a marine species.
Created: 24 April 2001 by Sandy Lawson.
Last updated: 18 November 2021
Verification of Data
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Nomenclatural note
Illegitimate: priority for Gymnophlaea gracilis Kützing? (see Silva, Basson & Moe 1996): "Meanwhile, Kützing (1867: 1, pl. 1: figs. a--c) published a new species, Gymnophlaea gracilis, for which he gave the provenance as New Caledonia. According to Weber-van Bosse (1921: 204), however, the only specimen of G. gracilis in Kützing's herbarium (in L) is one collected at Galle, Sri Lanka, by Eduard von Martens, the zoologist of the Prussian Expedition to East Asia. The algae resulting from this expedition were published by Eduard's father, Georg von Martens, who initially (1868: 29) identified his son's collection as Gymnophlaea dichotoma (J. Agardh) Kützing (Nemastoma dichotomum J. Agardh), but later in the same publication (1868: 146) decided that it was representative of a new species, G. gracilis. It is clear that Martens had sent Kützing a specimen of his son's collection bearing the manuscript name Gymnophlaea gracilis, and that this specimen, which Kützing annotated ``Tab. Phyc. t. XVII, p.1, tab.1'', is the holotype of G. gracilis Kützing and an isotype of G. gracilis Martens. (The holotype of G. gracilis Martens, at B, was destroyed during World War II.) Whether Kützing's action was an innocent mistake is an unanswered question. The title-page of the account of the algae of the expedition is dated 1866, seemingly rendering G. gracilis Kützing a later homonym of G. gracilis Martens. However, the demonstration by Stafleu & Cowan (1981: 317) that contemporary reviews establish the date of publication of the completed work as January 1868 reverses the relative priority of the two names. The subsequent nomenclatural history of this species, however, makes this relative priority moot." - (10 December 2014) - M.D. Guiry
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Citing AlgaeBase
Cite this record as:
M.D. Guiry in Guiry, M.D. & Guiry, G.M. 18 November 2021. AlgaeBase. World-wide electronic publication, National University of Ireland, Galway. https://www.algaebase.org; searched on 12 April 2025
