Type specimen

A preserved specimen designated as the reference point for applying a scientific name to a taxon. It anchors the name, but need not be the most typical example of the taxon.

Biological nomenclature: The formal system for naming organisms and regulating how scientific names are applied. Type specimens anchor names under the rules governing biological naming.
Lectotype: A specimen selected later from original material to serve as the name-bearing type. It can stabilize a name when no holotype was designated or remains usable.
Taxonomic identification: The process of determining which taxon an organism belongs to. Comparisons with types help test whether an organism matches a named taxon.
Type concept (biology): The view that a taxon is defined by an idealized or representative form. A type specimen anchors a name without defining an ideal form.
Taxon: A named group of organisms at any rank in biological classification. A type specimen anchors a name applied to a taxon.
Neotype: A specimen selected as a new name-bearing type when original type material is missing or destroyed. It replaces unavailable original material under specified conditions.
Taxonomic revision: A systematic reassessment of the names, boundaries, and relationships of taxa in a group. Revisions revisit type material when reassessing taxon boundaries and names.
Species delimitation: The process of deciding where species boundaries lie. A type anchors a name, while delimitation determines which organisms belong to the species.
Scientific name: A standardized name used to identify a taxon in scientific classification. The specimen serves as the reference for applying this name.
Syntype: Any of multiple specimens cited when a name was established without a single holotype. Several specimens can jointly represent the original type series.

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