![Loading full text...](/images/jp/spinner.gif)
Full text loading...
In 1832 Ehrenberg transferred Vibrio spirillum Müller and V. undula Muller to a new genus, Spirillum. Müller’s two species were renamed Spirillum volutans (Muller) Ehrenberg and S. undula (Müller) Ehrenberg, respectively. A comparison of Müller’s description of V. spirillum with Ehrenberg’s description of S. volutans, however, strongly indicates that the organisms described were not the same; therefore the name S. volutans should be related to the organism described by Ehrenberg. It is therefore requested that the Judicial Commission delete Müller’s name from the author citation for S. volutans (i.e., S. volutans Ehrenberg, not S. volutans [Müller] Ehrenberg). Although Ehrenberg included S. undula and S. volutans in his new genus, he did not designate a type species. Stiles (1905) was apparently the first to designate the type species (S. volutans), but the later designation of S. undula as the type by Vuillemin (1913) is the designation that has been generally recognized. The acceptance of S. undula as the type species is not only contrary to the rules of nomenclature [Rule 9c(3)] but also unfortunate because the name is a source of confusion and error. It is therefore requested that the Judicial Commission issue an opinion establishing S. volutans Ehrenberg as the type species of Spirillum Ehrenberg and placing S. undula on the list of rejected names. Wells’ strain (ATCC 19554) is designated as the neotype strain of S. volutans.