Syntype

Precise definitions of this and related terms for types have been established as part of the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature and the International Code of Nomenclature for algae, fungi, and plants.

Historically, it was common to describe a new species or subspecies from several syntypes without designating a holotype, but this practice is generally frowned upon by modern taxonomists, and most are gradually being replaced by lectotypes.

[2] They are no longer name-bearing types, though if the lectotype is lost or destroyed, it is generally preferable to use a paralectotype as a replacement (neotype).

Where specimens in a syntype series are found to belong to different taxa, this may cause nomenclatural instability, since the nominal species can be interpreted in different ways.

[3] In botanical nomenclature, a syntype can be made in the description of a species or an infraspecific taxon.