24 Bulletin of Zoological Nomenclature 52(1) March 1995 
Case 2922 
Octopus vulgaris Cuvier, 11797) and Loligo vulgaris Lamarck, 1798 
(Mollusca, Cephalopoda): proposed conservation of the specific names 
Angel Guerra 
Institulo de Investigaciones Marinas (CSIC). Ediiardo Cabello 6. 
36208 Vigo (Pontevedra). Spain 
Miguel A. Alonso-Zarazaga 
Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales (CSIC), Jose Gutierrez Abascal 2, 
28006 Madrid Spain 
Abstract. The puipose of this application is to conseire the specific names of both the 
common octopus Octopus vulgaris Cuvier, [1797] and the common squid Loligo 
vulgaris Lamarck, 1798. The names of these economically important species are 
threatened by senior subjective synonyms unused in the past century, Sepia octopodia 
Linnaeus, 1758 and S. octopus Gmelin, [1791] (octopus) and S. loligo Linnaeus, 1758 
(squid). 
1. The common octopus was described and named by Linnaeus (1758, p. 658) as 
Sepia octopodia. Schneider (1784, p. 116) used the binomen Octopodia polypus for the 
species but both his generic and specific names were suppressed by the Commission 
in Opinion 233 (April 1954). The same species was described as Sepia octopus by 
Gmelin ([1791]. p. 3149). 
2. Cuvier ([1797], p. 380) described the genus Octopus, cited Sepia octopus and 
proposed the replacement name Octopus vulgare [sic], presumably to avoid tau- 
tonymy. Opinion 233 (p. 278) gave the type species of Octopus Cuvier. [1797] 'by 
Linnean tautonymy (Opinion 16)" as Octopus vulgaris (correction of vulgare) Cuvier, 
[1797]. The reference to Linnean tautonymy is incorrect (of Article 69e(i) of the 
Code). This Opinion overlooked a prior designation of type species by Gray (1847, 
p. 205) who listed Sepia octopus as the type species for Octopus Cuvier, [1797]. 
Also, the senior synonyms Sepia octopodia Linnaeus, 1758 and S. octopus Gmelin, 
[1791] were not suppressed in the Opinion. Before 1920 the name Polypus Schneider, 
1784 (p. 116) was sometimes used instead of Octopus. Polypus, like Schneider's 
name Loligo (see para. 5 below), was rejected in Opinion 233 as being a specific 
name. 
3. According to priority the name for the common octopus should therefore be 
Octopus octopodia (Linnaeus, 1758), a binomen unused for over a century. 
4. The common squid was described by Linnaeus (1758, p. 659) as Sepia loligo; the 
type species of Sepia is S. officinalis Linnaeus, 1758 (the common cuttlefish). 
5. Lamarck (1798) described the genus Loligo and included (p. 130) Loligo 
vulgaris as the name for the common squid. The name "Loligo' has been ascribed to 
Schneider (1784, p. 110) but he used the name for a species only and 'Loligo' 
Schneider, 1784 was rejected by the Commission in Opinion 233. The type species of 
Bulletin of Zoological Nomenclature 52(1) March 1995 25 
Loligo is L. vulgaris Lamarck. 1798 by subsequent designation by Children (1823, 
p. 167). 
6. The name for the common squid should therefore be Loligo loligo (Linnaeus, 
1758) but this binomen has never been used. 
7. Since Cuvier's ([1797]) and Lamarck's (1798) descriptions the names Octopus 
vulgaris and Loligo vulgaris have been established in a vast literature on the common 
octopus and common squid respectively; a list of over 40 references for usage of each 
specific name is held by the Commission Secretariat. To adopt the usage of the senior 
subjective synonyms octopodia Linnaeus, 1758 or octopus Gmelin, [1791] for the 
octopus, or loligo Linnaeus, 1758 for the squid, would cause severe confusion and 
disruption to the nomenclature of these common and economically very important 
species. 
8. The International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature is accordingly 
asked: 
(1) to use its plenary powers to suppress the following specific names for the 
purposes of the Principle of Priority but not for those of the Principle of 
Homonymy: 
(a) octopodia Linnaeus, 1758, as published in the binomen Sepia octopodia; 
(b) octopus Gmelin, [1791], as published m the binomen Sepia octopus; 
(c) loligo Linnaeus, 1758, as pubhshed in the binomen Sepia loligo; 
(2) to place on the Official List of Generic Names in Zoology the name Loligo 
Lamarck. 1798 (gender: masculine), type species Loligo vulgaris Lamarck, 1798 
by subsequent designation by Children (1823): 
(3) to amend the entry for Octopus Cuvier, [1797] on the Official List of Generic 
Names in Zoology to record that the type species is Sepia octopus Gmelin, 
[1791] (suppressed senior objective synonym oi Octopus vulgaris Cuvier, [1797]) 
by subsequent designation by Gray (1847): 
(4) to place on the Official List of Specific Names in Zoology the name vulgaris 
Lamarck. 1798, as pubhshed in the binomen Loligo vulgaris (specific name of 
the type species of Loligo Lamarck, 1798); 
(5) to amend the entry for Octopus vulgaris Cuvier, [1797] on the Official List of 
Specific Names in Zoology to record that vulgaris Cuvier, [1797] is the valid 
junior objective synonym of Sepia octopus Gmelin, [1791], the type species of 
Octopus Cuvier, [1797]; 
(6) to place on the Official Index of Rejected and Invalid Specific Names in 
Zoology the following names: 
(a) octopodia Linnaeus, 1758, as pubhshed in the binomen Sepia octopodia 
and as suppressed in (l)(a) above: 
(b) octopus Gmelin, [1791], as published in the binomen Sepia octopus and 
as suppressed in (l)(b) above; 
(c) loligo Linnaeus, 1758, as published in the binomen Sepia loligo and as 
suppressed in (l)(c) above. 
Acknowledgement 
We wish to acknowledge the financial support of research project 'Fauna Iberica 11', 
DGICYT PB89-0081. We thank Dr Gary Rosenberg for providing some useful 
references. 
26 Bulletin of Zoological Nomenclature 52(1) March 1995 
References 
Children, J.G. 1823. Lamarck's genera of shells. 177 pp. Murray, London. [Translated from 
French], 
Cuvier, G.L.C.F.D. [1797]. Tableau eleinenlaire de I'liisloire nalurelle cles animaux. xvi, 710 pp., 
14 pi. Baudouin, Paris. 
Gmelin, J.F. [1791]. Carol! a Liniie Sysleina Naturae, Ed. 13, vol. 1, part 6 (Vermes). 
Pp. 3021-3910. Lugduni. 
Gray, J.E. 1847. A list of the genera of recent Mollusca, their synonyma and types. Proceedings 
of llie Zoological Society of London, 1847: 129-219. 
Lamarck, J.B.P.A. de M. de. 1798. Sur les genres Seche. Calmar et Poulpe. Bulletin des 
Sciences, par la Societe Philomatique de Paris, 17; 129-131. 
Linnaeus, C. 1758. Systema Naturae..., Ed. 10, vol. 1. 824 pp. Salvii, Holmiae. 
Schneider, J.G. 1784. Saimnhmg vermischter Ahhandlungen zur Aufkldrung der Zoologie und 
Handlungsgeschichten. xvi, 348 pp., 1 pi. Reimer, Berlin. 
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