224 Bulletin of Zoological Nomenclature 50(3) September 1993 Case 2873 Entys Dumeril, 1806 (Reptilia, Testudines): proposed conservation Robert G. Webb Department of Biological Sciences. University of Texas at El Paso, El Paso, Texas 79968-0519. U.S.A. Abstract. The purpose of this apphcation is the conservation of the turtle generic name Eniys Dumeril, 1806. This has the senior synonym Emydes Brongniart, [1805], which has not been used as a valid name and of which suppression is sought. The type species of Emys is Testudo lutaria Linnaeus, 1 758, long treated as a junior synonym oi Emys orbicularis (Linnaeus, 1758), the European pond turtle. 1. Dumeril (1806, p. 76) made the name Emys available by providing a brief description. The entry begins: '3. Les emydes {emys) forment un genre ...'; other genera (e.g. 'Les tortues (testudo)' ) were treated similarly. On the next page the genus is referred to as 'Emyde' in a taxonomic key; in context 'Emyde' is used here as a vernacular name like Tortue". No nominal species are mentioned in Dumeril's work. 2. Fitzinger ( 1 843, p. 29) designated 'Emys europaea. Schweigg." as the type species of Emys. The Emys europaea of Schweigger (1812, p. 305) is Testudo europaea Schneider, 1783 (p. 323). Testudo europaea and T. orbicularis Linnaeus (1758, p. 198) are regarded as synonyms. Fitzinger's type species designation has been accepted by most authors but is invalid (see below). 3. Bell (1828, p. 515) had earlier specifically given Emys picta (Testudo picta Schneider, 1812, p. 306, currently Chrysemys picta) as the type species oi Emys. This designation would be highly disruptive of nomenclatural stability: Emys would replace Chrysemys Gray, 1844 (p. 27) for the widespread North American painted turtle C picta, and Emys as always used would need another generic name. 4. Fortunately Bell's type designation is invalid. Lindholm (1929, pp. 281-282, footnote), noting that Dumeril (1806) did not mention any nominal species in his genera, pointed out that Froriep (1806, p. 77) had in his German translation of Dumeril allocated the two species Testudo lutaria Linnaeus, 1758 and T. ferox Schneider, 1783 to Emys. These two nominal species were the first to be included in the genus and only from them can the type species be selected (Article 69a(i)( 1 ) of the Code). This was done by Lindholm (1929, p. 282, footnote) who designated T lutaria as the type species. Loveridge & Williams (1957, p. 201) also cited 7". lutaria Linnaeus as the type. Bell's and Fitzinger's designations are invalid because they were not of either of the nominal species included in Emys by Froriep. 5. Linnaeus published the two names Testudo orbicularis and T. lutaria together (1758, p. 198). Modern authors have recognized these two names as synonyms (e.g. Mertens & Wermuth, 1955, p. 349; 1960, p. 63; Loveridge & Williams, 1957, p. 202; Wermuth & Mertens, 1961, p. 79; 1977, p. 26). Their simultaneous publication requires first reviser choice of precedence; this was effected by Mertens & Wermuth
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