8. Taxonomic treatments

8.1 Treatments should be diagnostic, descriptive, and succinct. Descriptions should confirm identifications made with keys and repeat in descriptions all characteristics that are used in the keys. Descriptions of all taxa within a rank should be made directly comparable (parallel). For example, within a genus, if pseudoparaphyllia is mentioned for one species, it must be mentioned for all other species in that genus.

8.2 Taxonomic treatments will be from the level of family down to species or infraspecific taxa. Since the taxonomic account is not intended to be monographic, any intermediate categories above the specific level (e.g., subfamily, subgenus, section, and subsection) are not encouraged.

8.3 Characters that are always present at a higher level should not be repeated in the descriptions for taxa at lower levels. Important characteristics that occur outside Chinese Flora area should be given in Brackets [ ]. In general, the treatment at each level will be as follows:

Families-

The family names provided with no authority and bibliographic citations will be followed by its Chinese characters and its Hanyu Pinyin in parentheses. The author's name(s) of a familial treatment will appear just below the next line and will be centered. A concise morphologic description of not more than 150 words will be imposed, plus a statement concerning the total number of genera in the world and the number of genera accepted for China. Additional statements on unique features or peculiar pattern of distribution of a family may be added. Normally, the description of a family should be shorter than any of its included generic descriptions; and the description of a genus shorter than species description, specially for a monotypic genus.

Genera-

The name of a genus will be followed by its authority and its Chinese name with its Hanyu Pinyin in parentheses. Type species, bibliographic citation, and synonymy should not be listed unless the type or the generic synonym is Chinese taxa. The author of a generic treatment, if different from the family, will be given and flushed right. A concise generic description and the number of species in the genus from the world and China will be provided. Comments on the history, taxonomy, diagnostic characters, and nomenclatural problems of difficult or controversial genera may be added.

Species-

The name of a species will be followed by its authority, its bibliographic citation, and its Chinese name with the Hanyu Pinyin in parentheses. Only Asiatic synonymy and type information of the Chinese taxa will be given. For each species, the species description, new illustrations (or reference to previously published illustrations), habitat information and other ecological data, distribution, and listing of selected Chinese specimens examined will be given. Taxonomic comments on species identity and notes on medical and economic uses in China are welcome additions. Subspecies and varieties, if accepted, will be treated essentially the same way as species, but it will be provided with much shorter descriptions.