Book Reviews

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ZOOLOGY

Scientific and Standard English Names of and of North America North of Mexico, with Comments Regarding Confidence in Our Understanding – Seventh Edition.

By Brian I. Crother, (committee chair). 2012. Society for the Study of Amphibians and Reptiles. Herpetological Circular 39. 92 + 5 pages. [Single copies of this circular are available from the Publications Secretary, Breck Bartholomew. P.O. Box 58517, Salt Lake City, Utah 84158-0517 USA. E-mail: [email protected]. 14.00 USD].

This checklist was prepared for the Society for the rank in line with the developing evolutionary Study of Amphibians and Reptiles and issued for the concept. This stimulated widespread controversy and World Congress of in Vancouver, British debate among herpetologists (Adler 2012: 331–333). Columbia, in August 2012. It is a revision of the 2008 Although Collins was removed as chair of the SSAR SSAR Sixth Edition (reviewed by Cook 2008). Its after he produced a fourth edition in 1997, (Adler 2012) key feature is the inclusion of “Comments Regarding he followed with a fifth in 2000 and a sixth in 2009. Confidence in Our Understanding”. These comments The fifth was re-titled Standard Common and Current give useful background for taxa where the names on Scientific Names for North American Amphibians, Tur - this list are still subjects of continuing disagreement and tles, Reptiles, and Crocodilians to reflect group con - debate among contemporary herpetologists. Although cepts that added birds to traditional “reptiles”. It res - one choice is preferred for the list, references and short tricted the term to lizards and and listed discussions are included for most dissenting alternate 53 reviewers but no committee. It was published by views. As well, comments on studies yet unpublished, the Center for North American Herpetology (CNAH) in progress, or needing to be undertaken to clarify [originally Center for North American Amphibians and certain outstanding problems in relationships, are also Reptiles] which had been founded by Collins. Mean - included. while, the SSAR formed a new committee and also The origin of North American checklists for amphib - issued a fifth (2000), and sixth edition (2008) under ians and reptiles with “common” [English] names is the traditional title and classification. traced to Yarrow (1882) in the introduction to the cur - The seventh edition by the SSAR begins with the rent list. In 1956, the American Society of Ichthyolo - historical background of and reptile check - gists and Herpetologists (ASIH) formed a committee lists and useful tabular comparison including the num - of herpetologists and published a checklist. It provid - ber of species covered in checklists in 1882, 1978, 2012 ed standardized common names for use in zoos and with the total species 465, 454, to 632 reflecting largely popular publications for amphibians and reptiles com - the recent emphasis on the evolutionary species con - parable what had been accomplished long before for cept, data from DNA, and increased access to little birds by The American Ornithologists Union (AOU). known corners of the world. A guide to proper cita - In 1977, a SSAR Common and Scientific Names Com - tion is followed by very useful instructions on forming mittee was formed to update the previous ASIH list. It Standard English Names. Next, a section covers rules was chaired by Joseph T. Collins with decisions made on capitalization, formation of descriptive or modify - by committee. It produced editions in 1978 and 1982 , ing word, formation and use of group names, forma - however, in 1990, for the third edition, Collins unilat - tion of English species and subspecies names; litera - erally changed from committee chairman to author. ture cited, and acknowledgements. Finally, 71 pages Subsequently (Collins 1991) he published, in advance cover and annotate recognized species and subspecies of the next edition of the checklist, a recommendation by portions of the committee: Anura (Frogs): Darrel for mass changes by elevating 55 allopatric (geograph - R. Frost, Roy W. McDiarmid, Joseph R. Mendelson III, ically not in contact) distinctive subspecies to species David M. Green; Caudata (Salamanders): Stephen G.

340 2012 BOOK REVIEWS 341

Tilley (Chair), Richard Highton, David B. Wake; Squa- References mata (Lizards) Kevin D. Quieroz, Tod W. Reeder; Adler, K. Editor. Contributions to the History of Herpetology. (Snakes): Brian I. Crother (Chair), Jeff Volume 3. Issued to commemorate the 7th World Congress Boundy, Frank T. Burbrink, Jonathan A. Cambell, R. of Herpetology Vancouver, British Columbia 2012. Society Alexander Pyron; Crocodilia (Crocodilians): Brian I. for the Study of Amphibians and Reptiles. 564 pages. Crother; Testudines (Turtles), John B. Iverson (Chair), Collins, J. T. 1991. Viewpoint: A new taxonomic arrangement Peter A. Meylan, Michael E. Seidel; Alien Species: for some North American amphibians and reptiles. Herpe - Fred Kraus. It concludes with a 5-page listing of avail- tological Review 22(3): 41–42. Collins, J. T., and T. W. Taggart. 2008. An alternative classi- able SSAR publications. fication of the New World rat snakes (genus Pantherophis There is a conspicuous omission of direct reference [Reptilia: Squamata: ]). Journal of Kansas Her- to the existence of parallel fifth and sixth checklists petology 26: 16–18. produced by the CNAH. There are a number of dif- Collins, J. T., and T. W. Taggart. 2009. Standard Common ferences in recognition of taxa, the most notable [and and Current Scientific Names for North American Amphib- rejected] in the SSAR list is Collins and Taggart (2008) ians, Turtles, Reptiles, and Crocodilians. Sixth Edition. Pub- resurrection of generic names for Fox Snakes (Minto- lication of The Center for North American Herpetology, nius) [see Crother et al. 2011] and “Woodland Rat Lawrence, Kansas. iv + 44 pages. Snakes” (Scotophis) [see Pyron et al. 2009] which were Cook, F. R. 2008 [2009]. [Book review]. Scientific and Stan- accepted in Collins and Taggart (2009) but remain dard English Names of Amphibians and Reptiles of North included in Pantherophis in the SSAR list. America North of Mexico, with Comments Regarding Con- This list has been adopted as their official list by fidence in Our Understanding, Sixth Edition. Canadian Society for the Study of Amphibians and Reptiles Field-Naturalist 122(4): 357–358. (SSAR), the Herpetologists League (HL), the American Crother, B. I., M. E. White, J. M. Savage, M. E. Eckstut, Society of Ichthyologists and Herpetologists (ASIH), M. R. Graham, and D. W. Gardner. 2011. A Reevalua- Canadian Association of Herpetologists (CAH), Cana- tion of the Status of the Fox Snakes, Pantherophis gloydi Conant and Baird and Girard (Lepidosauria). dian Amphibian and Reptile Conservation Network P. vulpinus ISRN Zoology 2011(436049): 1–15. (CARCNet), and Partners in Amphibian and Reptile Green, D. M. 2012. Noms Francais des Amphibiens et des Conservation (PARC). As well, more informally, Cana- Reptiles d’amerique au Nord du Mexique/Standard French dian federal and provincial reports on amphibians and Names of Amphibians and Reptiles of North America North reptiles generally follow the SSAR list. However, hav- of Mexico. Herpetological Circulars, Society for the Study ing two standard English lists has been confusing for of Amphibiens and Reptiles, number 40. 63 pages. many and thus weakened their effectiveness to promote Gibbs, H. Lisle, S. J. Corey, G. Blouin-Demers, K. A. Prior, public utilization. and P. J. Weatherhead. 2006. Hybridization between A companion volume to the 2012 SSAR checklist in mtDNA-defined phylogeographic lineages of black rat- English is a list of French names is covered in a sepa- snakes (Pantherophis sp.). Molecular Ecology 15: 3755– rate publication (Green 2012). 3767. Pyron, R. A., and F. T. Burbrink. 2009. Neogene diversifi- FRANCIS R. COOK cation and taxonomic stability in the tribe Lampro- Curator Emeritus and Research Associate, Canadian Museum peltini (Serpentes: Colubridae). Molecular Phylogenetics of Nature, Ottawa. Ontario K1P 6P4 and Evolution 52(2): 524–529.