viduata

Viduata is a Latin feminine form used as a specific epithet in the scientific names of various organisms. In zoological and botanical nomenclature, viduata functions as an adjective in a binomial name, and its exact meaning can vary by taxon. Because taxonomic epithets are selected by the describing author, the epithet does not designate a single shared trait across all uses; different species bearing the epithet may differ in appearance, ecology, or locality, with viduata serving primarily as the recognized Latin form in the name.

Etymology and form: Viduata is derived from the Latin word vidua, meaning widow. The form viduata is the feminine adjective matching feminine-gendered genera in Latinized scientific names. In practice, the gender agreement of epithets follows the rules of the genus in which the species is placed, so other gendered forms may appear in related names.

Taxonomic usage: The epithet viduata appears in taxonomic records across plants and animals, occurring in multiple genera. Its presence in a name does not by itself reveal a universal characteristic of the species; instead, the meaning is best interpreted by consulting the original species description, where the author may explain the rationale for the chosen epithet.

See also: Latin in biological nomenclature; binomial nomenclature; taxonomic epithets; vidua (a related Latin term often encountered in discussions of nomenclature).