Welcome to the
Diatom New Taxon File
at the Academy of Natural Sciences, Philadelphia

For scientists, taxonomists, systematists, students and diatom enthusiasts.

The Diatom New Taxon File (also known as the "New Species File") was established by Dr. Ruth Patrick in 1950s with a goal to have a 5 x 8" card for every diatom name published after the comprehensive Mill's Index (covering years 1816-1932). For many years, Dr. Charles Reimer and his assistants, Margaret Henderson and Su-Ing Yong diligently maintained the file, producing most of the cards. These entries were later partially used to compile the CalAcademy catalogue of diatom names. The original index card catalogue was digitized in 2014-2016 by a team led by Jana Veselá and Chelsea Smith and is currently maintained in electronic format by the staff of the ANSP Diatom Herbarium.

Contact information:
Marina Potapova: marina.potapova@drexel.edu
Laura Aycock: lla32@drexel.edu

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Cite this website as:
Potapova, M., Veselá, J., Smith, C., Minerovic, A., Aycock, L. (Editors) 2024. Diatom New Taxon File at the Academy of Natural Sciences (DNTF-ANS), Philadelphia. Retrieved on October 3, 2024, from http://dntf.ansp.org

Contributors:

Ruth M. Patrick, Charles W. Reimer, Margaret V. Henderson, Su-Ing Yong, Eduardo A. Morales, Donald F. Charles, Kathleen M. Sprouffske, Jaclyn M.W. Mantell, Dan T. Mellott, David H. Keller, Marina Potapova, Jana Veselá, Chelsea R. Smith, Ly C. Nguyen, Jonathan Starr, Alison Minerovic, Alys Kirsh, Jennifer Beals, Margaret F. Williamson, Emily Ciliberti, Nichole Joseph, Naomi Friedman, Greg Aaron, Laura Aycock, Diane Winter, Caroline Gallen, Cassidy Joyce, Micaela Kersey, Abigail King

External review committee (2018):

Sarah A. Spaulding, Rex L. Lowe, Kalina M. Manoylov

Taxonomic hints

Here you will be able to find some materials useful for taxonomic work with diatoms:

New Species File: Details on cards

Each taxon published after the issue of Mill's Index (1932) should be associated with a card on this website. However, we have noticed a small percentage of missing cards during the databasing process, and are trying to keep notes on these. This is an ongoing project with new taxa added frequently We are aware of the fact that this is an incomplete project and will greatly appreciate contacting us when you notice any missing records, misspellings, or errors. If you published new taxa recently and would like to see it added, please email a copy of the paper to Laura Aycock at lla32@drexel.edu.

Cards can be one- or two-sided, depending on the amount of information about the taxon in the original publication. Relatively new taxa usually have information on both sides of the card. Rarely, additional card or cards were made (3rd, 4th, etc. side of a card), if more information was included but did not fit on the first card.

Content of the card

Diatom name: genus, species, infraspecific name

Authority and year of the publication

Indication of a novelty: new genus, species, combination, status, name, etc.; sometimes a new type (e.g., holotype, isotype, lectotype, isolectotype, neotype, epitype), emended description or validation is specified. "Problematic name" (physically an orange card) indicates a taxon or entry with issues (e.g., taxon cited in a publication, but the name could not be confirmed or was determined as an error or misspelling).

Reference: In full or abbreviated form.


Optional:

Basionym

Type locality

Images: Drawings (in original size), LM photos (in original size or 1500x magnification), SEM/TEM photos (usually made smaller to fit the card). Note that not ALL images from the publication have to be always included on the card (in that case, representative images are chosen).

Description: In full form.


Written comments (e.g., validity notes) mostly by Charles W. Reimer (see Acknowledgements).