Use this tool to match a list of scientific names to the corresponding accepted names recognized by the Washington Flora Checklist and the 2nd Edition of the Flora of the Pacific Northwest. Names can be provided by manually entering them into the text box below, or by formatting them as a tab-delimited text file for upload. Use the text box option to check one or a few names; use the upload option to check larger lists of names. Additional instructions are provided below.
The nomenclatural tables used by the name checker are most complete for vascular plants of Washington state and adjacent areas of the Pacific Northwest, primarily those covered by the 2nd Edition of the Flora of the Pacific Northwest. Although our tables contain data for vascular plants outside the Pacific Northwest, along with macrofungi, lichenized fungi, algae, and bryophytes, we do not make an active effort to curate that data.
Enter one or more scientific names into the text box below, with each name on its own line. Do not include any other information besides the scientific name, optionally with question marks or 'sp.' qualifiers.
Names must be formatted as a tab-delimited text file, with a file type of .txt or .tab. The first line of the file must contain a header row with field names. Field names that are recognized by the name checker code are listed below; of these, the only required field is ScientificName. The text file may also contain other fields; these fields will be included, unmodified, in the output file. Field names can be in any order.
Results will be returned as a tab-delimited text file with the input columns in the same order. Appended to these will be a new set of columns containing information about the status of each name and the accepted names.
Field Name: ScientificName
Data Type: Text
Required: Yes
Explanation: A properly formatted scientific name, without authors.
Field Name: Country
Data Type: Text
Required: No
Explanation: If the list of names is for a specific country, enter the country name under this column. This will be used to determine name misapplications. Common variants and abbreviations for the United States are recognized.
Field Name: StateProvince
Data Type: Text
Required: No
Explanation: If the list of names is for a specific state or province, enter its name under this column. This will be used to determine name misapplications. Do not enter abbreviations.
Field Name: FPNW2ndEdition
Data Type: Text
Explanation: The scientific name(s) used in, and accepted by, the 2nd Edition of the Flora of the Pacific Northwest (2018).
Field Name: FPNW1stEdition
Data Type: Text
Explanation: The scientific name(s) used in, and accepted by, the 1st Edition of the Flora of the Pacific Northwest (1973).
Field Name: AcceptedFamily
Data Type: Text
Explanation: The currently accepted family name.
Field Name: AcceptedScientificName
Data Type: Text
Explanation: The currently accepted scientific name based on homotypic and heterotypic synonymy. Does not account for misapplications or changes in taxonomic circumscriptions.
Field Name: SpeciesAuthors
Data Type: Text
Explanation: Species authors for the recommended scientific name.
Field Name: InfraspeciesAuthors
Data Type: Text
Explanation: Infrapecies authors for the recommended scientific name, if the name contains a subspecies, variety, or forma.
Field Name: MisappliedTo/SeeAlso
Data Type: Text
Explanation: Lists the accepted name(s) to which the scientific name may now correspond, based on past misapplications of the scientific name or past application of the name to a broader taxonomic circumscription.
Field Name: Comments
Data Type: Text
Explanation: Provides explanatory comments, if needed, to explain misapplied or ambiguous names.
