LTH 1. Literatura Taxonomica Herpetologica.1. Presentation

Abstract

This paper is the first of a series devoted to the analysis of the early classifications of amphibians and reptiles published from 1758 onwards, and of the nomenclatural status of all the nomina of herpetological taxa established in these works. In this introductory paper, we present the new methodology and the terminology used for these analyses, which propose a new approach to the understanding of the hierarchy of nomina and taxa in taxonomic publications. The hierarchical relationships between the taxa in these works have strong nomenclatural implications and consequences on the understanding of the nomenclatural status (nominal-series assignment, nomenclatural availability; taxonomic allocation; nomenclatural validity and nomenclatural correctness) of all early nomina, and in particular those of the higher nominal-series (family- and class-series), which have so far been misinterpreted in many cases.