Re: Storrs Olson and Archaeoraptor

[Dinogeorge@aol.com]

In a message dated 6/6/02 7:28:00 AM Pacific Daylight Time, 
m.moser@lrz.uni-muenchen.de writes:

<< "The status of a previously unavailable name is not changed by
 its mere citation (that is, without adoption for a taxon) even if
 accompanied by a reference to the work in wich the name was published
 but was not made available". Therefore, the status of Archaeoraptor
 being an unavailable name (nomen nudum) from the original publication is
 not changed by the fact that a lectotype is choosen by a later author
 (i. e. Olson 2000). If the later author had erected Archaeoraptor
 explicitely as new name (Art. 16) the name would have become available
 from this later publication, but this did not happen. So Archaeoraptor
 is unavailable and not a senior objective synonym of Microraptor. >>


The problem is that Olson's reference is not a "mere citation." It is an 
explicit attempt to revise the taxon Archaeoraptor, which Olson accepted as 
available via the National Geographic article. It thus becomes necessary to 
suppress the name Archaeoraptor by petitioning the ICZN.