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.
marks the preferred name from each source.
World Register of Marine Species (WoRMS)
| Name | Relationship |
|---|---|
| Balaenoptera physalus (Linnaeus, 1758) | Preferred |
| Balaena antipodarum Tomilin, 1957 | Synonym |
| Balaena antiquorum Fischer, 1829 | Synonym |
| Balaena boops Linnaeus, 1758 | Synonym |
| Balaena mysticetus major Kerr, 1792 | Synonym |
| Balaena physalis Kerr, 1792 | Synonym |
| Balaena physalus Linnaeus, 1758 | Basionym |
| Balaena quoyi Fischer, 1829 | Synonym |
| Balaena rostrata australis Desmoulins, 1822 | Synonym |
| Balaena sulcata Neill, 1811 | Synonym |
| Balaenoptera antarctica Gray, 1846 | Synonym |
| Balaenoptera aragous Farines & Carcasonne, 1829 | Synonym |
| Balaenoptera australis Gray, 1846 | Synonym |
| Balaenoptera blythii Anderson, 1879 | Synonym |
| Balaenoptera brasiliensis Gray, 1846 | Synonym |
| Balaenoptera gibbar Lacépède, 1804 | Synonym |
| Balaenoptera mediterraneensis Lesson, 1828 | Synonym |
| Balaenoptera mediterranensis Cabrera, 1961 | Synonym |
| Balaenoptera musculus Van Beneden & Gervais, 1880 | Synonym |
| Balaenoptera patachonica Lahille, 1905 | Synonym |
| Balaenoptera patachonicus Burmeister, 1865 | Synonym |
| Balaenoptera patagonica Dabbene, 1902 | Synonym |
| Balaenoptera quoyii Lonnberg, 1906 | Synonym |
| Balaenoptera rorqual Lacépède, 1804 | Synonym |
| Balaenoptera sulcata arctica Schlegel, 1841 | Synonym |
| Balaenoptera swinhoii Gray, 1866 | Synonym |
| Balaenoptera tenuirostris Sweeting, 1840 | Synonym |
| Balaenoptera velifera Cope, 1869 | Synonym |
| Balaenoptera velifera copei Elliot, 1901 | Synonym |
| Balaenopteris guibusdam Tomilin, 1957 | Synonym |
| Benedenia knoxii Gray, 1864 | Synonym |
| Dubertus rhodinsulensis Tomilin, 1957 | Synonym |
| Physalis vulgaris Fleming, 1828 | Synonym |
| Physalus antarcticus Gray 1850 | Synonym |
| Physalus australis Gray, 1850 | Synonym |
| Physalus brasiliensis Gray, 1850 | Synonym |
| Physalus dugundii Heddle, 1856 | Synonym |
| Physalus fasciatus Gray, 1850 | Synonym |
| Physalus patachonicus Burmeister, 1866 | Synonym |
| Physalus verus Billberg, 1828 | Synonym |
| Pterobalaena communis Van Beneden, 1857 | Synonym |
| Pterobalaena gigantea michrochira Barkos, 1862 | Synonym |
| Rorqualus musculus F. Cuvier, 1836 | Synonym |
| Sibbaldius tectirostris Cope, 1869 | Synonym |
| Sibbaldius tuberosus Cope, 1869 | Synonym |
| Swinhoia chinensis Gray, 1868 | Synonym |
Integrated Taxonomic Information System (ITIS)
| Name | Relationship |
|---|---|
| Balaenoptera physalus (Linnaeus, 1758) | Preferred |
| Balaena physalus Linnaeus, 1758 | Original name/combination |
Paleobiology Database
| Name | Relationship |
|---|---|
| Balaenoptera physalus (Linnaeus, 1758) | Preferred |
| Balaena physalus Linnaeus, 1758 | Valid |
| Benedenia knoxii Gray, 1864 | Heterotypic synonym |
| Balaenoptera gibbar Lacepede 1804 | Heterotypic synonym |
| Balaenoptera rorqual Lacepede 1804 | Heterotypic synonym |
| Balaenoptera antiquorum Gray 1846 | Heterotypic synonym |
| Balaenoptera brasiliensis Gray, 1846 | Heterotypic synonym |
| Physalus brasiliensis (Gray 1846) | Heterotypic synonym |
| Physalus duguidii Gray 1864 | Heterotypic synonym |
| Physalus fasciatus Gray, 1850 | Heterotypic synonym |
| Physalus patachonicus Burmeister, 1866 | Heterotypic synonym |
| Swinhoia chinensis Gray, 1868 | Heterotypic synonym |
| Physalus antiquorum (Fischer 1829) | Heterotypic synonym |
| Balaena antiquorum Fischer, 1829 | Heterotypic synonym |
| Balaenoptera patachonica Burmeister, 1865 | Heterotypic synonym |
| Balaenoptera patachonicha (Burmeister 1865) | Heterotypic synonym |
| Balaenoptera velifera Scammon and Cope 1869 | Heterotypic synonym |
| Balaenoptera physalus quoyi Fisher 1829 | Heterotypic synonym |
| Balaenoptera quoyi (Fisher 1829) | Heterotypic synonym |
| Balaenoptera velifera copei Elliot, 1901 | Heterotypic synonym |
| Balaenoptera copei (Elliot 1901) | Heterotypic synonym |
| Balaena sulcata arctica Schlegel 1841 | Invalid |
| Balaenoptera arctica (Schlegel 1841) | Invalid |
| Balaena sulcata Neill, 1811 | Heterotypic synonym |
| Balaenoptera blythi Anderson 1879 | Heterotypic synonym |
| Balaenoptera boops (Linnaeus 1758) | Heterotypic synonym |
| Balaena boops Linnaeus, 1758 | Heterotypic synonym |
NCBI Taxonomy
| Name | Relationship |
|---|---|
| Balaenoptera physalus | Preferred |
| Balaenoptera physalus (Linnaeus, 1758) | Authority |
Species 2000 & ITIS Catalogue of Life: April 2013
| Name | Relationship |
|---|---|
| Balaenoptera physalus (Linnaeus, 1758) | Preferred |
| Balaena physalus Linnaeus, 1758 | Synonym |
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