dawsoni

Dawsoni is not a taxon by itself; it is a Latinized species epithet used in the scientific names of diverse organisms. In binomial nomenclature, the epithet dawsoni follows the genus name and is used to honor an individual with the surname Dawson who contributed to the discovery or study of the species. As with many eponymous epithets, the spelling reflects Latinization conventions.

Etymology and form: The epithet derives from the surname Dawson. For a male honoree, dawsoni is the common form; for a female honoree, the form is typically dawsonae, and if naming multiple honorees the ending may be -orum or -arum. Some groups have used variants such as dawsonii due to historical naming practices. The choice of ending does not change the generic placement of the species.

Usage across taxa: The epithet appears in many biological groups, including animals and plants, and across dozens of genera. Because dawsoni simply commemorates a person, there is no single species, but rather many distinct species across different groups that share this epithet.

See also: In taxonomy, eponymous naming practices and surname-based epithets are common; Dawson (surname) and patronyms in scientific naming provide context for such epithets.