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 |
|---|---|
| Megaptera novaeangliae (Borowski, 1781) | Preferred |
| Balaena allamack Gray, 1846 | Synonym |
| Balaena atlanticus Hurdis, 1897 | Synonym |
| Balaena boops Fabricius, 1780 | Synonym |
| Balaena gibbosa Gray, 1843 | Synonym |
| Balaena lalandii Fischer, 1829 | Synonym |
| Balaena longimana Rudolphi, 1832 | Synonym |
| Balaena nodosa Bonnaterre, 1789 | Synonym |
| Balaena novaeangliae Borowski, 1781 | Basionym |
| Balaena sulcata antarctica Schlegel, 1841 | Synonym |
| Balaenoptera antarctica Temminck, 1841 | Synonym |
| Balaenoptera astrolabe Pucheran, 1843 | Synonym |
| Balaenoptera australis Lesson 1828 | Synonym |
| Balaenoptera capensis A. Smith, 1834 | Synonym |
| Balaenoptera leucopteron Lesson, 1842 | Synonym |
| Balaenoptera syncondylus A. Mueller, 1863 | Synonym |
| Kyphobalaena keporkak Van Beneden, 1868 | Synonym |
| Megaptera americana Gray, 1846 | Synonym |
| Megaptera antarctica Gray, 1846 | Synonym |
| Megaptera australis Iredale & Troughton, 1934 | Synonym |
| Megaptera bellicosa Cope, 1871 | Synonym |
| Megaptera boops Van Beneden & Gervais, 1880 | Synonym |
| Megaptera brasiliensis True, 1904 | Synonym |
| Megaptera braziliensis Cope, 1867 | Synonym |
| Megaptera burmeisteri Burmeister, 1866 | Synonym |
| Megaptera gigas Cope, 1865 | Synonym |
| Megaptera indica Gervais 1883 | Synonym |
| Megaptera kusira Trouessart, 1904 | Synonym |
| Megaptera kuzira Gray, 1850 | Synonym |
| Megaptera lalandii Gray, 1864 | Synonym |
| Megaptera longimana Gray, 1846 | Synonym |
| Megaptera longimana morei Gray, 1866 | Synonym |
| Megaptera longipinna Gray, 1846 | Synonym |
| Megaptera nodosa Bonnaterre, 1789 | Synonym |
| Megaptera nodosa Lahille, 1905 | Synonym |
| Megaptera nodosa bellicosa Elliot, 1904 | Synonym |
| Megaptera nodosa lalandii Tomilin, 1946 | Synonym |
| Megaptera nodosa nodosa Tomilin, 1946 | Synonym |
| Megaptera nodosa novaezealandiae Ivashin, 1958 | Synonym |
| Megaptera novaezelandiae Gray, 1864 | Synonym |
| Megaptera osphya Mead & Brownell, 2005 | Synonym |
| Megaptera osphyia Cope, 1865 | Synonym |
| Megaptera poescop Gray, 1846 | Synonym |
| Megaptera versabilis Cope, 1869 | Synonym |
| Poescopia lalandii Gray, 1866 | Synonym |
| Rorqualus antarcticus F. Cuvier, 1836 | Synonym |
| Rorqualus australis Hamilton, 1837 | Synonym |
Integrated Taxonomic Information System (ITIS)
| Name | Relationship |
|---|---|
| Megaptera novaeangliae (Borowski, 1781) | Preferred |
| Megaptera nodosa (Bonnaterre, 1789) | Junior synonym |
| Megaptera braziliensis Cope, 1867 | Junior synonym |
| Megaptera indica Gervais 1883 | Junior synonym |
| Megaptera lalandii (Fischer, 1829) | Junior synonym |
| Megaptera longimana (Rudolphi, 1832) | Junior synonym |
| Megaptera longipinna Gray, 1846 | Other, see comments |
| Megaptera osphya Cope, 1865 | Junior synonym |
| Megaptera versabilis Cope, 1869 | Junior synonym |
| Balaena nodosa Bonnaterre, 1789 | Junior synonym |
| Balaena lalandii Fischer, 1829 | Junior synonym |
| Balaena longimana Rudolphi, 1832 | Junior synonym |
| Balaena novaeangliae Borowski, 1781 | Other, see comments |
Paleobiology Database
| Name | Relationship |
|---|---|
| Megaptera novaeangliae (Brisson 1762) | Preferred |
| Balaena novaeangliae Brisson 1762 | Valid |
| Balaena longimana Rudolphi, 1832 | Heterotypic synonym |
| Megaptera longimana (Rudolphi, 1832) | Heterotypic synonym |
| Physalus antarcticus (Temminck 1841) | Heterotypic synonym |
| Balaenoptera antarctica Temminck, 1841 | Heterotypic synonym |
| Megaptera antarctica (Temminck 1841) | Heterotypic synonym |
| Megaptera nodosa (Bonnaterre, 1789) | Heterotypic synonym |
| Balaena nodosa Bonnaterre, 1789 | Heterotypic synonym |
| Megaptera boops (Fabricius 1780) | Heterotypic synonym |
| Balaena boops Fabricius, 1780 | Heterotypic synonym |
| Megaptera lalandii Gray, 1864 | Heterotypic synonym |
| Poescopia lalandii Gray, 1866 | Heterotypic synonym |
| Balaena longipinna Gray 1846 | Homotypic synonym |
| Megaptera longipinna (Gray 1846) | Homotypic synonym |
| Megaptera americana Gray, 1846 | Heterotypic synonym |
| Megaptera kuzira Gray, 1850 | Heterotypic synonym |
| Megaptera kusira (Gray 1850) | Heterotypic synonym |
| Megaptera novaezealandiae (Gray 1864) | Heterotypic synonym |
| Megaptera nodosa novaezelandiae (Gray 1864) | Heterotypic synonym |
| Megaptera novaezelandiae Gray, 1864 | Heterotypic synonym |
| Balaenoptera capensis Smith 1835 | Heterotypic synonym |
| Rorqualus antarcticus Cuvier 1836 | Heterotypic synonym |
| Balaenoptera leucopteron Lesson, 1842 | Heterotypic synonym |
| Megaptera poeskop Gray 1846 | Heterotypic synonym |
| Balaena allamack Gray, 1846 | Heterotypic synonym |
| Balaenoptera astrolabae Pucheran 1853 | Heterotypic synonym |
| Balaenoptera syncondylus Muller 1863 | Heterotypic synonym |
| Megaptera gigas Cope, 1865 | Heterotypic synonym |
| Kyphobalaena keporkak Van Beneden, 1868 | Heterotypic synonym |
| Megaptera bellicosa Cope, 1871 | Heterotypic synonym |
| Megaptera nodosa bellicosa (Cope 1871) | Heterotypic synonym |
| Balaena atlanticus Hurdis, 1897 | Heterotypic synonym |
| Megaptera burmeisteri Gray 1866 | Heterotypic synonym |
| Megaptera braziliensis Cope, 1867 | Heterotypic synonym |
| Megaptera indica Gervais 1883 | Heterotypic synonym |
| Megaptera osphyia Cope, 1865 | Heterotypic synonym |
| Megaptera nodosa osphyia (Cope 1865) | Heterotypic synonym |
| Megaptera versabilis Cope, 1869 | Heterotypic synonym |
| Balaena lalandii Fischer, 1829 | Heterotypic synonym |
South African Vertebrates
| Name | Relationship |
|---|---|
| Megaptera novaeangliae (Borowski, 1781) | Preferred |
| Balaena lalandii Fischer, 1829 | Synonym |
| Balaena longimana Rudolphi, 1832 | Synonym |
| Balaena nodosa Bonnaterre, 1789 | Synonym |
| Balaena novaeangliae Borowski, 1781 | Synonym |
| Megaptera braziliensis Cope, 1867 | Synonym |
| Megaptera indica Gervais 1883 | Synonym |
| Megaptera lalandii Fischer, 1829 | Synonym |
| Megaptera longimana (Rudolphi, 1832) | Synonym |
| Megaptera longipinna Gray, 1846 | Synonym |
| Megaptera nodosa (Bonnaterre, 1789) | Synonym |
| Megaptera osphya Cope, 1865 | Synonym |
| Megaptera versabilis Cope, 1869 | Synonym |
NCBI Taxonomy
| Name | Relationship |
|---|---|
| Megaptera novaeangliae | Preferred |
| Megaptera novaeanagliae | Misspelling |
Species 2000 & ITIS Catalogue of Life: April 2013
| Name | Relationship |
|---|---|
| Megaptera novaeangliae (Borowski, 1781) | Preferred |
| Megaptera nodosa (Bonnaterre, 1789) | Synonym |
| Megaptera braziliensis Cope, 1867 | Synonym |
| Megaptera indica Gervais 1883 | Synonym |
| Megaptera lalandii (Fischer, 1829) | Synonym |
| Megaptera longimana (Rudolphi, 1832) | Synonym |
| Megaptera longipinna Gray, 1846 | Synonym |
| Megaptera osphya Cope, 1865 | Synonym |
| Megaptera versabilis Cope, 1869 | Synonym |
| Balaena nodosa Bonnaterre, 1789 | Synonym |
| Balaena lalandii Fischer, 1829 | Synonym |
| Balaena longimana Rudolphi, 1832 | Synonym |
| Balaena novaeangliae Borowski, 1781 | Synonym |
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