costatus

Costatus is a Latin adjectival epithet used in the scientific names of various organisms. The term derives from costa, meaning rib or ridge, with the suffix -atus indicating "characterized by" or "provided with." In zoological and botanical nomenclature, costatus serves as a descriptive descriptor rather than signifying a single taxon.

In taxonomy, costatus typically denotes a ribbed or ridged feature observed in the organism. This may refer to rib-like ridges on shells, pronounced venation or ribbing on leaves, or other ridged structures. Because Latin adjectives must agree in gender with the genus, the form of the epithet varies: costatus is used with masculine genera, costata with feminine genera, and costatum with neuter genera.

The epithet costatus appears across different animal and plant groups and does not define a single lineage. Rather, it reflects a morphological observation that has been independently applied by researchers describing diverse species. As with other species epithets, multiple, unrelated taxa may bear the name costatus in combination with their respective genera.

When encountering a species named costatus, it is important to record the full binomial name (genus and species) to identify the organism unambiguously. The epithet alone does not indicate taxonomic relationships beyond a shared description of a ribbed or ridged characteristic.