Paratype vs. Holotype

Paratypenoun

(taxonomy) A physical specimen (or an illustration) that is not the holotype but is considered the same taxon by the author of the holotype.

Holotypenoun

(taxonomy) The single physical example (or illustration) of an organism used to formally describe the species (or lower-order taxon), subsequently to be kept as a reference.

Paratype

In zoology and botany, a paratype is a specimen of an organism that helps define what the scientific name of a species and other taxon actually represents, but it is not the holotype (and in botany is also neither an isotype nor a syntype). Often there is more than one paratype.

Holotypenoun

the original specimen from which the description of a new species is made

Holotype

A holotype is a single physical example (or illustration) of an organism, known to have been used when the species (or lower-ranked taxon) was formally described. It is either the single such physical example (or illustration) or one of several examples, but explicitly designated as the holotype.