Spergularia bocconei explained

Spergularia bocconei, Boccone's sandspurry, Greek sea-spurrey or Boccone's sea-spurrey, is a species of the genus Spergularia, in the family Caryophyllaceae. It is named after the Sicilian botanist Paolo Boccone. Scheele first published it as Alsine bocconi in 1843.^[1] It was transferred to the genus Spergularia by Graebner in 1919.^{[2] [3]} Pedersen placed the species in genus Spergula in 1984.^[4]

Name

The epithet used for this name is often spelled as bocconi, following the first usage by Scheele. This epithet is formed from a latinized form of Boccone's name: "Bocconus". Boccone however, rarely used a latinized form of his name: in all his books for example, even the ones in Latin, his name appears on the title page as "Paolo Boccone", contrary to the practice of the time.^[5] It is clear that Boccone's name does not possess a well-established latinized form.^[6] Hence the epithet should be formed in accordance with ICBN (Vienna Code) Recommendation 60C.1(a), which dictates that epithets derived from personal names ending in a vowel should be formed by adding the appropriate inflection, which is "-i" in the case of a single male. Thus bocconei is the only proper form.^{[7] [8]} Graebner used this form of the epithet when he transferred the species to the genus Spergularia in 1919.

External links

• Jepson Manual Treatment
• Photo gallery

Notes and References

1. Scheele, G.H.A. (1843), Flora (oder Allgemeine botanische Zeitung) 26: 431.
2. Graebner, K.O.R.P.P. (1919), Syn. Mitteleur. Fl. [Ascherson & Graebner] 5(1): 849.
3. Several sources cite this name as Spergularia bocconi (Scheele) Foucaud ex Merino. The only source citing a bibliographic reference is Tropicos, Missouri Botanical Garden. It refers to Mem. Soc. Esp. Hist. Nat. 2(9): 496 (1904). The abbreviation of the title is incomplete: the full title (fide IPNI) is "Mem. Real Soc. Esp. Hist. Nat." ("Real" was dropped in later volumes). On the cited page, the name Spergularia Bocconi Foucaud (in litt.) is found, however without a reference to the basionym (direct or indirect: neither the basionym author Scheele nor the basionym genus Alsine, nor a bibliographic reference was cited), and so this name is not admissible under ICBN (Vienna Code) Art. 32.5 and 32.6. "in litt." = in litteris, meaning "in correspondence". See Mem. Real Soc. Esp. Hist. Nat. 2(9): 496 and ICBN (Vienna Code) Art. 32
4. Pedersen, T.M. (1984), Fl. Patagonica (Collecc. Cient. 8) 4a: 256.
5. Linnaeus called him "Bocco" (genitive: bocconis), probably because he thought "Boccone" was an ablative.
6. As required by ICBN (Vienna Code) Art. 60 Rec. 60C.2 for admitting epithets formed from latinized personal names when only the last syllable is affected.
7. http://www.efloras.org/florataxon.aspx?flora_id=1&taxon_id=250060910 Flora of North America
8. http://ibot.sav.sk/icbn/no%20frames/0065Ch7OaGoNSec1a60.htm ICBN (Vienna Code) Art. 60