Omphalea triandra L., 1759

Jarvis, Charlie, 2007, Chapter 7: Linnaean Plant Names and their Types (part O), Order out of Chaos. Linnaean Plant Types and their Types, London: Linnaean Society of London in association with the Natural History Museum, pp. 696-717 : 699

Omphalea triandra Linnaeus , Systema Naturae, ed. 10, 2: 1264. 1759, typ. cons.

["Habitat in Jamaica."] Sp. Pl., ed. 2, 2: 1377 (1763). RCN: 7101.

Type not designated.

Original material: Herb. Linn. No. 1102.1 ( LINN) ; [icon] in Browne, Civ. Nat. Hist. Jamaica: 335, t. 22, f. 4. 1756.

Generitype of Omphalea Linnaeus , nom. cons.

Current name: Omphalea triandra L. ( Euphorbiaceae ).

Note: Omphalea Linnaeus , nom. cons, against Omphalandria P. Browne.

Omphalea triandra presents particular difficulties because the original material, a Patrick Browne specimen (1102.1 LINN) and Browne’s cited illustration (t. 22, f. 4) are identifiable as Pouteria multiflora (A. DC.) Eyma ( Sapotaceae ). Gillespie (in Jarvis & al., Regnum Veg. 127: 70. 1993) designated a Swartz collection in Herb. Thunberg (No. 22721, UPS) as a neotype. As explained by Jarvis & al., l.c.: 6. 1993), with the non adoption of the NCU proposals with which their Linnaean Generic List was linked, this neotypification is untenable because original material is in existence. It appears that a conservation proposal is necessary if Omphalea ( Euphorbiaceae , and itself conserved) is not to become the correct name for Pouteria ( Sapotaceae ).