Coelacanth, Coelacanthus banffensis and Whitea sp.

What's in a Name?

The name coelacanth is derived from the ancient Greek, and means "hollow spine". From the fossil record, coelacanths were long thought to have hollow spines; the hollow spine of the living specimen helped confirm Smith's original provisional identification.

The species represented by the holotype specimen was named Coelacanthus banffensis, in recognition of the proximity of the find to Banff, Alberta.

A previously unidentified specimen is formally "named" with the publication of its description in a scientific publication. The Whiteia specimens are named only to genus. A species name has not been established for these specimens because they have not yet been studied in enough detail to establish their unique characteristics, and their relationship to other species.