Sometimes taxonomists create new names for groups that already have a name. They may do this because they are unaware of the original name, or they may think the organism before them belongs to a different group when in fact it does not. If two or more names are found to apply to the same group, they are considered synonyms. In most cases, the first name takes priority and is considered to be the valid or accepted name. However, there can be exceptions, and it's not always easy to determine which of a series of synonyms should be considered valid or accepted. Here we list the synonyms provided to EOL by our classification partners. We also include other versions of the name that most likely refer to the same group, for example, misspellings in the literature or different variations of the authorship associated with the name.

Preferred marks the preferred name from each source.

World Register of Marine Species (WoRMS)

Name Relationship
Globicephala melas (Traill, 1809) Preferred
Delphinus deductor Scoresby, 1820 Synonym
Delphinus globiceps Temminck, 1841 Synonym
Delphinus globiceps G. Cuvier, 1812 Synonym
Delphinus grampus Gray, 1846 Synonym
Delphinus grinda Lyngbye, 1824 Synonym
Delphinus melas Traill, 1809 Synonym
Globicephala leucosagmaphora Rayner, 1939 Synonym
Globicephala melaena (Traill, 1809) Synonym
Globicephala melaena Thomas, 1898 Synonym
Globicephala melas leucosagmaphora Tomilin, 1962 Synonym
Globicephala meloena Paulus, 1960 Junior synonym
Globicephalus affinis True, 1889 Synonym
Globicephalus australis Gray, 1871 Synonym
Globicephalus chiliensis Phillipi, 1896 Synonym
Globicephalus conductor Rapp, 1837 Synonym
Globicephalus globiceps Philippi, 1893 Synonym
Globicephalus melas Flower, 1885 Synonym
Globiceps affinis Flower, 1884 Synonym
Globiceps melas Flower, 1884 Synonym
Globiocephalus affinis Gray, 1846 Synonym
Globiocephalus chilensis Philippi, 1896 Synonym
Globiocephalus incrassatus Gray, 1862 Synonym
Globiocephalus melas Murie, 1874 Synonym
Globiocephalus swineval Gray, 1846 Synonym
Grampus affinis Gray, 1866 Synonym
Phocaena edwardii A. Smith, 1834 Synonym
Phocaena edwardsii True, 1889 Synonym
Phocaena globiceps A. Smith, 1834 Synonym
Sphaerocephalus incrassatus Gray, 1864 Synonym

Integrated Taxonomic Information System (ITIS)

Name Relationship
Globicephala melas (Traill, 1809) Preferred
Globicephala melaena (Traill, 1809) Unavailable, literature misspelling
Delphinus melas Traill, 1809 Original name/combination

Paleobiology Database

Name Relationship
Globicephala melas (Traill, 1809) Preferred
Globicephalus melas (Traill, 1809) Valid
Delphinus melas Traill, 1809 Valid
Globicephala melaena (Traill, 1809) Valid
Globicephalus intermedius Gray 1827 Heterotypic synonym
Globicephala edwardii Smith 1834 Heterotypic synonym
Globicephala leucosagmaphora Rayner, 1939 Heterotypic synonym

NCBI Taxonomy

Name Relationship
Globicephala melas Preferred
Globicephala melaena Synonym

Species 2000 & ITIS Catalogue of Life: April 2013

Name Relationship
Globicephala melas (Traill, 1809) Preferred
Globicephala melaena (Traill, 1809) Synonym
Delphinus melas Traill, 1809 Synonym

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