subgenus n : (biology) taxonomic group between a genus and a species [also: subgenera (pl)]

In biology, a subgenus is a taxonomic rank directly below genus. See rank (botany) and rank (zoology).

In zoology, a subgeneric name can be used independently or included in a species name, in parentheses, placed between the generic and specific name: e.g. the Tiger Cowry of the Indo-Pacific, Cypraea (Cypraea) tigris Linnaeus, which belongs to the subgenus Cypraea of the genus Cypraea. However, it is not mandatory, or even customary, when giving the name of a species, to include the subgeneric name.