Question

Assertion: The scientific name Malus malus is illegitimate.
Reason: It is a tautonym.
A. Both Assertion and Reason are correct and Reason is the correct explanation for Assertion.
B. Both Assertion and Reason are correct but Reason is not the correct explanation for Assertion.
C. Assertion is correct but Reason is incorrect.
D. Both Assertion and Reason are incorrect.

Answer 1

A two-part scientific name is given to any known species on earth, enabling people around the world to communicate unambiguously about animal species. Tautonyms are zoological names of species that consist of two identical terms (the same word is used for the generic name and the specific name).

Complete answer: Binomial nomenclature is perhaps the biological system of naming species wherein the name comprises two terms, the first word is the 'generic name' indicating the genus and the second word is the 'specific epithet' indicating the species of the organism." All recognized living species on this planet, including plants, animals, birds, and even some microbes, have been described with their own species.
-Tautonyms are zoological naming for species consisting of two similar words (for the general term and the specific name, the same spelling is used). In zoology, such names are tolerated, but not when the two parts of the name of a species need to differ.
-Each plant has been given a scientific name which consists of two parts, according to binomial nomenclature. The name is either underlined in italics or written in it. Since it is just a tautonym and does not follow the traditional binomial nomenclature, the scientific name Malus malus is invalid.
Hence, option A-both assertion and reason are correct and reason is the correct answer.

Note: In addition to certain drawbacks, binomial nomenclature has great benefits, such as difficulty learning Latin names, names that are foreign to common people, and names that are long compared to common names. The International Code of Botanical Nomenclature (ICBN) is now referred to as the 'International Code of Nomenclature for Algae, Fungi, and Plants' (ICN).