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Type Depositories

Taxonomic names of organisms are linked to individual specimens known as holotypes. When the identity of a specimen or a population of specimens is called into question, the identity can be ultimately confirmed by comparison with the holotype. Below is a quantitative summary of the solifuge type specimen holdings of the world's major museum collections as of 2005. As this website develops, each species account will identify the particular museum holding the holotype of each particular named species. The legend at the bottom of this page explains the abbreviations used in the table. Sometimes, a species is named and described, then later found to have already been named by another author (in which case the new name for the species is regarded as a synomym of the original name).  The types are still retained however, as they serve as the permanent anchor for the proposed new name and are useful should the synonymy be challenged at a later date.  In consequence, the number of type specimens exceeds the number of currently recognized species.

Institutional abbreviations:

We welcome feedback to continue to improve this resource and further promote the science of these poorly understood and fascinating creatures. If you have questions or suggestions for the website content, please contact Paula Cushing (Paula.Cushing@dmns.org).