Why would a female animal forego her opportunity to pass on her own genes into the next generation and, instead, help to raise somebody else's young? One potential answer comes in the form of kin-selection. If the youngsters she helps to rais e are related to her, then they will share some of her genes, and it may pay to invest in them rather than attempting to breed herself.

The following Applications were published on 30 June 1997 in Vol. 54, Part 2 of the Bulletin of Zoological Nomenclature. Comment or advice on any of these Applications is invited for publication in the Bulletin and should be sent to the Executive Secretary (ICZN), c/o The Natural History Museum, Cromwell Road, London SW7 5BD, U.K.