3 The New York Years (1931–1953)

Zoological Nomenclature 337
should be modified and the continuity of the term preserved. Certain concepts
of nomenclature changed over time, resulting in conflicts between the rules of
naming by the early post-Linnaeans and the taxonomists in the late 19th century
whoformulatedthecodesofnomenclature.
Mayr was also active in cases of synonymy, not as a priority buff, but because
he was seeking the right solution to a complex question. In a series of brief
articles published between 1931 and 1986, he clarified the nomenclatural status
of certain names of birds based on his superb knowledge of the ornithological
literature and his familiarity with the Code of Nomenclature. Examples are Calao
Bonnaterre (1931g), Egretta brevipes (1933e), Rhamphozosterops (1933o), several
taxa of Aplonis starlings (1935a), Limosa lapponica menzbieri (1936e), the family
name Meliphagidae (1944i), the Fijian Mountain Lorikeet Vini amabilis (1945a),
the African Ploceus graueri (1945g), the Tibetan shrike Lanius tephronotus (1947g),
Turdus musicus (1952h), Accipiter ferox (1956o), Heteralocha (1956p), the pigeons
Treron griseicauda and T. pulverulenta (1956n), Ducula (Serresius) galeata (1957h),
the snipes Gallinago (1963d) and the name of the fossil rail Rallus hodgeni of New
Zealand (1986p).
And, of course, Mayr participated actively in application to the International
Commission of Zoological Nomenclature for the protection of names threatened
by “name diggers.” The work connected with almost all of these applications took
as much time as writing a scientific paper. Hence it is entirely justified to mention
them here and to list their titles in the bibliography. In addition, other zoologists
asked Mayr to support their applications as a co-author. His applications in the
interest of nomenclatural stability include the following: To suppress J.R. Forster’s
(1794) names for several Australian birds which had been overlooked universally
(1952b), to suppress the names Drosophila brouni (1954a), Turdus musicus in favor
of T. philomelos (1957c), the genus name Microura in favor of Pnoepyga (1961e,
1963e), and to suppress eight dubious names based on young or damaged birds
or on egg shells (1962c); to end confusion and establish the current usage of the
generic names Tanagra and Euphonia (1963i), to accept Cardinalis Bonaparte,
1838 for the congeneric Northern and Middle American species of Richmondena
and Pyrrhuloxia (1964h), and to validate the names Cacatua Brisson (1964p) and
Lorius Vigors (1968d). The last proposals refer to two generic names introduced
into the literature by Brisson (1760) which were Mayr’s early concern in a letter to
Erwin Stresemann dated 2 July 1931. At that time the nomenclatural stability of
the names of hundreds of genera of birds was threatened if Brisson’s names would
be declared invalid unless accompanied by valid species names; Brisson’s generic
names were finally accepted in 1955 (Bock 1994b; Melville 1995).