What is "spp"?

[Mahlon G. Kelly]

s935537 at acs.csc.cuhk.hk  writes:
> Hi everyone,
> 
>      I have found some scientific names of organism end with "spp.".
>    For example, Staphylococcus spp. and Salmanella spp.
>    I wonder to know what they mean. Are the meaning of "spp." the same?
>  
>    Please help me.
> 
> Ricky Leung
> 
Spp usually is an English short-hand for "species". That is,
spp would usually mean that the species could be one of many.
Usually it means that the biologist is being lazy.
-- 
Associate Professor (Emeritus)
University of Virginia
mgk at darwin.clas.virginia.edu