Thesaurus Format

In thesaurus format, synonyms are arranged in alphabetic order among the accepted names so that any name can be assessed.  If the name is a synonym, the accepted name is given below it.  Accepted names are in bold.  Synonyms are in normal font.  For example, the Maples, genus Acer, begin like this:      Acer barbatum           var. longii                >Acer barbatum           var. villipes                >Acer barbatum      Acer brachypterum                >Acer grandidentatum var. sinuosum      Acer campestre      Acer carolinianum                >Acer rubrum var. trilobum      Acer circinatum   So, Acer barbatum is an accepted species name, but the varietal name Acer barbatum var. longii is considered to be synonymous with the species A. barbatum.  Acer brachypterum is a synonym of a variety ofAcer grandidentatum.  Acer campestre is an accepted name.  Note that nominate subspecies and varieties (those repeating the species epithets) such as Acer barbatum var. barbatum are omitted from the synonymy; these by definition are synonyms of the corresponding species if no other subspecies (or varieties) are recognized. The other format for viewing synonyms is checklist format.