Bulletin of Zoological Nomenclature 72(1) March 2015 81

Comment on proposed replacement of the holotype of kochii Reichenbach, 1847 (currently Zygorhiza kochii; Mammalia, ) by a neotype (Case 3611; see BZN 70: 103–107)

Philip D. Gingerich Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences and Museum of Paleontology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109–1079, U.S.A. (e-mail: [email protected])

Uhen (BZN 70: 103–107) requests designation of a neotype to replace the existing holotype of the late archaeocete Basilosaurus kochii Reichenbach, 1847. I ask the Commission to decline this request. The history of Basilosaurus kochii Reichenbach, 1847, is outlined here, following Kellogg (1936) and others. Harlan (1834) named the genus Basilosaurus for ‘a vertebra of enormous dimensions’ from Louisiana in the United States but provided no species name. Owen (1839) recognized Basilosaurus to be a rather than a reptile and proposed the replacement name Zeuglodon. Owen (1841) then named Zeuglodon cetoides based on dental remains from the Ocala Limestone Formation (upper Jackson Group strata of late Eocene, middle to late age), in Clark County, Alabama (Kellogg, 1936; see also Jaramillo & Oboh-Ikuenobe, 1999). Zeuglodon is a junior synonym of Basilosaurus, and the name Basilosaurus cetoides is now widely used for the largest archaeocete from upper Jackson Group strata in Alabama. Synonyms of Basilosaurus cetoides include Zeuglodon harlani De Kay, 1842; Hydrargos sillimanii Koch, 1845; Zeuglodon macrospondylus Müller, 1849; and Alabamornis gigantea Abel, 1906. The type specimen of Basilosaurus cetoides is generally regarded as Philadelphia Academy of Natural Sciences 12944A, a lumbar or anterior caudal vertebral centrum measuring 36 cm in length and 18 cm in breadth (Kellogg, 1936; Uhen, 2013). Basilosaurus kochii was named by Reichenbach (in Carus, 1847), based on a specimen from the Ocala Limestone (upper Jackson Group strata of late Eocene, middle to late Priabonian age) near Clarksville, Alabama. The type, variously called a ‘palate,’ ‘smaller palate,’ or ‘small skull,’ was illustrated by Reichenbach (in Carus, 1847, plate 2, figs. 3–4; see also Müller, 1849, plates 3–5). Reichenbach distinguished Basilosaurus kochii from Basilosaurus cetoides on the basis of its small size. Synonyms of Zygorhiza kochii include Zeuglodon hydrarchus Carus, 1849; and Zeuglodon brachyspondylus minor Müller (1851). True (1908) proposed the genus Zygorhiza for Zeuglodon brachyspondylus minor Müller. The type specimen of Zygorhiza kochii is in Museum für Naturkunde Berlin [MNB] Ma 43248 (previously 15324), a posterior cranium with occipital condyles that measure 11–12 cm across their outer margins (Müller, 1849, plate 3). Lumbar vertebral centra of Zeuglodon brachyspondylus minor are in the order of 6 cm long and 7 cm in breadth (Müller, 1849). Finally, a medium-sized archaeocete, ‘Zeuglodon’ brachyspondylus, was named by Müller (1849) from Washington County, Alabama. This too came from upper Jackson Group strata of late Eocene, middle to late Priabonian age, and was distinguished by its large but anteroposteriorly short lumbar vertebrae. The type specimen designated by Gingerich (2007) is the lumbar vertebra illustrated in 82 Bulletin of Zoological Nomenclature 72(1) March 2015 Müller’s (1849) plate 20, row 2, number 6, which Kellogg (1936) listed as an unnumbered MNB specimen that measures 19 cm in length and 19 cm in breadth. There is no cranium known for ‘Zeuglodon’ brachyspondylus. Kellogg (1936) placed ‘Zeuglodon’ brachyspondylus in the genus Pontogeneus based on Pontogeneus priscus Leidy (1852). Pontogeneus priscus Leidy (1852) and Cynthiacetus maxwelli Uhen (2005) may be synonyms of Zeuglodon brachyspondylus or they may represent a fourth (and possibly fifth) upper Jackson Group lineage. Both are late Eocene, middle to late Priabonian in age. Pontogeneus is from the Jackson Formation of Caldwell Parish, Louisiana, and Cynthiacetus is from the Yazoo Clay of Hinds County, Mississippi. The one described centrum of a lumbar vertebra of Cynthiacetus maxwelli measures 8 cm in length and 12 cm in breadth (Uhen, 2005). The position of this vertebra in the lumbar column is uncertain, and it is missing anterior and posterior epiphyses. Uhen (BZN 70: 103–107, paragraph 10) argues that the lack of a neotype for Zygorhiza kochii exacerbates ongoing difficulty in understanding cetacean diversity by preventing resolution of possible synonymy between Zygorhiza kochii and the related species serratus Gibbes (1845) and Chrysocetus healyorum Uhen & Gingerich (2001). The type specimen of Dorudon serratus is from the Harleyville Formation of Berkeley County in eastern South Carolina, which is early late Eocene, early Priabonian in age (Uhen, 2004, 2013). It differs from all upper Jackson Group basilosaurids in being older geologically (early Priabonian versus middle to late Priabonian), and in coming from a different geographic province (Atlantic Coastal Plain versus Gulf Coast bordering the Gulf of Mexico). Further, Dorudon serratus is larger than Zygorhiza kochii and has more robust vertebrae and other comparable skeletal elements (Uhen, 2004, 2013). The type specimen of Chrysocetus healyorum is from the Pregnall Member of the Tupelo Bay Formation of Orangeburg County in eastern South Carolina, which is early late Eocene, early Priabonian in age (Uhen, 2013). Here again, it differs from all Jackson Group basilosaurids in being older geologically (early Priabonian versus middle to late Priabonian) and in coming from a different geographic province (Atlantic Coastal Plain versus Gulf Coast). Further, Chrysocetus healyorum is smaller than Zygorhiza kochii and it has more gracile vertebrae and other comparable skeletal elements (Uhen & Gingerich, 2001; Uhen, 2004, 2013). Uhen (BZN 70: 103–107, paragraph 11) requests that the International Commis- sion on Zoological Nomenclature use its plenary power to designate U. S. National Museum [USNM] specimen 11962 as a neotype of Zygorhiza kochii to replace MNB Ma 43248. The proposed neotype USNM 11962 comes from Choctaw County, Alabama, 50 km along strike northwest of the type locality, and from the same upper Jackson Group strata as the type. USNM 11962 is a more complete and better preserved specimen, however the holotype MNB Ma 43248 and the proposed neotype USNM 11962 both represent the same small basilosaurid species from upper Jackson Group strata. Zygorhiza kochii, like all species, should be thought of as a population of individual represented by a collection of known specimens. Replacement of the existing holotype by a neotype will not solve any pressing problem, nor will it change the collection of known specimens of Zygorhiza kochii in any way. USNM 11962 is available for comparison whether or not it is a neotype, and the existing holotype MNB 43428 identifies the collection of known specimens of Bulletin of Zoological Nomenclature 72(1) March 2015 83 the small upper Jackson Group basilosaurid species Zygorhiza kochii as well as the proposed neotype USNM 11962.

Additional and corrected references Abel, O. 1906. Ueber den als Beckengurtel von Zeuglodon beschriebenen Schultergurtel eines Vogels aus dem Eocan von Alabama. Centralblatt für Mineralogie, Geologie und Paläontologie, Stuttgart, 15: 450–458. De Kay, J.E. 1842. Natural history of New York, zoology. 146 pp. Appleton, Wiley, Putnam, New York. Harlan, R. 1834. Notice of fossil bones found in the Tertiary formation of the State of Louisiana. Transactions of the American Philosophical Society, 4: 397–403. Jaramillo, C. & Oboh-Ikuenobe, F.E. 1999. Sequence stratigraphic interpretations from palynofacies, dinocyst and lithological data of upper Eocene-lower Oligocene strata in southern Mississippi and Alabama, U.S. Gulf Coast. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatol- ogy, Palaeoecology, 145: 259–302. Leidy, J.P. 1852. Description of Pontogeneus priscus. Proceedings of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia, 6: 52. Müller, J. 1851. Neue Beiträge zur Kenntniss der Zeuglodonten. Bericht über die zur Bekanntmachung geeigneten Verhandlungen der Königlichen Preussische Akademie der Wissenschaften zu Berlin, 1851: 236–246. Owen, R. 1839. Observations on the teeth of the Zeuglodon, Basilosaurus of Dr. Harlan. Proceedings of the Geological Society of London, 1839: 24–28. Owen, R. 1841. Observations on the Basilosaurus of Dr. Harlan (Zeuglodon cetoides Owen). Transactions of the Geological Society of London, Series 2, 6: 69–79. Reichenbach, H.G.L. 1847. Systematisches. In C. G. Carus (Ed.), Resultate geologischer, anatomischer und zoologischer Untersuchungen über das unter dem Namen Hydrarchos von Dr. A. C. Koch zuerst nach Europa gebrachte und in Dresden angestellte grosse fossile Skelett, pp. 13–15. Arnoldische Buchlandlung, Dresden and Leipzig. Uhen, M.D. 2004. Form, function, and anatomy of Dorudon atrox (Mammalia, Cetacea): an archaeocete from the middle to late Eocene of Egypt. University of Michigan Papers on Paleontology, 34: 1–222. Uhen, M.D. 2005. A new genus and species of archaeocete whale from Mississippi. Southeast- ern Geology, 43: 157–172. Uhen, M.D. 2013. A review of North American . Alabama Museum of Natural History Bulletin, 31(2): 1–45.

Corrigendum

Case 3658. Calyptorhynchus baudinii Lear, 1832 (Aves, CACATUIDA): proposed conservation of usage by designation of a neotype (BZN 71: 170–178)

On pp. 176–177, the holotype no. for Calyptorhynchus latirostris was incorrectly given as A6436. The correct number is A6463. The corrected proposal (3) on p. 177 should read: (3) to place on the Official List of Specific Names in Zoology the name latirostris Carnaby, 1948, as published in the binomen Calyptorhynchus latirostris and as defined by holotype A6463in the Western Australian Museum.