orientatus

Orientatus is a Latin term used in biological nomenclature as a species epithet. It means eastern or originating from the east, and is used to describe organisms with geographic association to eastern regions or to honor that origin. The word has masculine orientatus, feminine orientata, and neuter orientatum forms, and these must agree in gender with the genus.

In taxonomy, orientatus appears across various kingdoms, including animals, plants, and fungi. It is typically a geographic or descriptive epithet rather than indicating a close evolutionary relationship. The epithet is assigned by the describing author in the original publication and becomes part of the official binomial name.

Many species in different groups may bear orientatus, reflecting the eastward origin of the specimens or the region from which they were first described. It should be read as a geographic descriptor and not a diagnostic character. The related epithet orientalis is also common and varies by gender in agreement with the genus.