INTRODUCTION
Scutellaria indica var. alba S. Kim & S. Lee was described in 1994 from a specimen collected on the slopes of Sangumburi crater, Jejudo Island, Korea (Kim and Lee, 1994). It was characterized by white corollas without purple markings on the lower lip, a dwarf habit, green stems lacking anthocyanin pigmentation, ovate-cordate leaves, erect corollas from the base, and pollen sculpturing with inconspicuous mural outlines (Kim and Lee, 1994, 1995a). These characters distinguish it from other infraspecific taxa of S. indica.
However, the epithet alba had already been validly published for a Japanese taxon as Scutellaria indica var. parvifolia f. alba (H. Hara) H. Hara ex Murata & T. Yamaz. (Murata and Yamazaki, 1993). According to Article 53.3 of the International Code of Nomenclature for algae, fungi, and plants (ICN) (Turland et al., 2025), names of infraspecific taxa within the same species are treated as homonyms, even if published at different ranks, when they are not based on the same type and have the same final epithet. Accordingly, Scutellaria indica var. alba is illegitimate under Art. 53.3 of the ICN and therefore is not subject to priority under Art. 11. A replacement name is therefore proposed below for the Jeju taxon originally described as S. indica var. alba.
TAXONOMIC TREATMENT
Scutellaria indica var. bibari
D. C. Son & S. Kim, nom. nov. Replaced synonym: Scutellaria indica var. alba S. Kim & S. Lee, Korean J. Pl. Taxon. 24: 74, 1994, nom. illeg., non S. indica var. parvifolia f. alba (H. Hara) H. Hara ex Murata & T. Yamaz., Fl. Jap. (Iwatsuki et al., eds.) 3a: 318, 1993.
Type
KOREA. Jeju-do: Jeju-si, Sangumburi crater, northwestern grassland on the crater rim, 470 m elev., 19 Jun 1992, S. Kim & H. Moon s.n. (holotype: SKK 60679!) (Fig. 1).
Etymology
The infraspecific epithet bibari is derived from the Jeju dialect word “비바리 (bibari),” meaning “maiden,” and refers to the cultural identity of Jejudo Island, the locality of the type population.
Note
Scutellaria indica var. alba is an illegitimate name under Art. 53.3 of the ICN, as it is a later homonym of S. indica var. parvifolia f. alba. Article 53.3 does not contradict Art. 11, which governs the priority between names applicable to the same taxon and the selection of correct names among legitimate names at the relevant rank. However, the present case concerns homonymy under Art. 53.3, which determines the legitimacy and usability of a name, not its priority. As S. indica var. alba is an illegitimate name under Art. 53.3, the provisions of Art. 11 do not apply in the present case.
Nevertheless, S. indica var. alba has continued to appear in taxonomic literature, floristic surveys, and national and nongovernmental biodiversity databases for nearly three decades (e.g., Kim and Lee, 1995a, 1995b; Kim, 2018; Lee et al., 2018; Korea National Arboretum, 2020; NSLK, 2025). This case highlights the need for periodic nomenclatural review to ensure compliance with the ICN, particularly through critical comparison with earlier infraspecific names published within the same species, including names published outside Korea. This taxon has also been confused with the invalidly published name Scutellaria indica f. albiflora Y. N. Lee (Lee, 1996), which was applied to white-flowered individuals of the widespread S. indica var. indica rather than to the Jeju Sangumburi taxon treated here. The replacement name Scutellaria indica var. bibari is proposed here for the Jeju taxon originally described as S. indica var. alba, while preserving nomenclatural continuity and reflecting the cultural identity of Jejudo Island.
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