Saving Quercus frainetto

In February 2022 the IOS received a note from Prof. Dr. Dénes Bartha of the University of Sopron, Hungary, informing us that the correct name for Hungarian oak, which for many years has been known as Quercus frainetto, was in fact Q. conferta. He referred us to an article he had published in 2021, which includes a painstakingly researched analysis of the history of the names of this oak. Quercus conferta was published in 1814 and it was traditionally believed that Q. frainetto had been published in 1813 and so had priority. An analysis by Sergio Sabato in 1990 had determined, however, that Q. frainetto was not published till 1815. According to the rules of botanical nomenclature, this means that Q. conferta now has priority and should be accepted as the correct name. This sort of name change generally causes inconvenience and irritation among the community of oak enthusiasts and professionals. Fortunately, the International Code of Nomenclature for algae, fungi, and plants allows for situations such as these to be resolved by a proposal to conserve a name that is widely used and would be changed based on priority. A proposal to conserve the name needs to be published in the journal Taxon and then it is reviewed by a specialist committee, which will make a recommendation to accept or reject the proposal. The recommendation is then reviewed by the General Committee at the next International Botanical Congress, and, if it is approved, the proposal is accepted and the name is conserved.

A group of IOS Directors and members of the Taxonomy Committee discussed the pros and cons of conserving Q. frainetto and a decision was taken to propose conservation. A proposal was submitted to Taxon and it has been published in the February issue of the journal (Vol. 72, Issue 1).

We must now await the review by the Nomenclature Committee for Vascular Plants and a final decision by the General Committee at the XX International Botanical Congress scheduled to take place in Madrid in July 2024. If Q. frainetto is conserved, it will save us a lot of label changing and database editing. Fingers crossed!