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Most inappropriate/fun/silly scientific names in Palaeontology

Comments

  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 30,746 ✭✭✭✭Galvasean


    Anomalocaris which means 'different shrimp' when it is in fact anything but.

    Pretty much any dinosaur with 'saurus' in it's name, as it is derived from 'sauros' which is Greek for lizard.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 30,746 ✭✭✭✭Galvasean


    How about Quetzalcoatlus? Named after the Aztec God of the same name which means 'feathered serphant'. In reality it was neither feathered nor a serphant.

    Or how about Dracorex hogwartsia? Dracorex, meaning 'dragon king' sounds cool, although maybe it would have suited a larger, fiercer dinosaur. But hogwartsia Bah, keep your Harry Potter away from my dinosaurs! damn you Bakker, you're not twelve anymore! :mad:For once I'm hoping Jack horner is right for a change (he thinks Dracorex is in fact a juvenille of a larger species of pachycephalosaur. If he is right, the name will no longer be used!) - more info on that here.


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 842 ✭✭✭Weidii


    It's always bothered me how both brachiopods and molluscan bivalves are referred to as bivalves. I know they are both bivalved, but it seems like calling a wolf and a tiger "sharp tooth" to me.


  • Moderators, Science, Health & Environment Moderators Posts: 10,087 Mod ✭✭✭✭marco_polo


    Apidium - An extinct primate whose name translates as 'small bull'

    Expanding the terms of reference to include silly / fun names we have:

    Masiakasaurus knopfleri - named after the musician Mark Knopfler of Dire Straits, Is just funny :D

    Also there is a jazz loving trilobite named Hedstroemia milesdavis


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 30,746 ✭✭✭✭Galvasean


    There was also Hyaenodon whose name means 'hyaena tooth' despite not being closely related to hyaenas or having particularly similar dentition.


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  • Moderators, Science, Health & Environment Moderators Posts: 10,087 Mod ✭✭✭✭marco_polo


    We also have small to medium size dinosaur Megapnosaurs meaning 'Big dead Lizzard' which is wrong on so many levels, mainly the usual not a lizzard (like all his kin), not very big and of course its dead its a fossil. Some contraversy over this one as the original discover chose a name already taken by a beetle and could not be re-contacted to re-name his discovery

    Or the carnivorous predator Phytosaur meaning 'plant reptile'.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 30,746 ✭✭✭✭Galvasean


    marco_polo wrote: »
    We also have small to medium size dinosaur Megapnosaurs meaning 'Big dead Lizzard' which is wrong on so many levels, mainly the usual not a lizzard (like all his kin), not very big and of course its dead its a fossil.

    Then there is Erlikosaurus, which means 'lord of the dead lizards'.
    marco polo wrote:
    Some contraversy over this one as the original discover chose a name already taken by a beetle and could not be re-contacted to re-name his discovery

    He's not the only one. Mononykus meaning 'single claw' has an unusual spelling as a type of weevil already had the name Mononychus, which is the proper spelling.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 30,746 ✭✭✭✭Galvasean


    Brachiosaurus which means 'arm lizard'.
    Do you see any arms?!!?!?!?!?

    brachiosaurus_z1.jpg


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 30,746 ✭✭✭✭Galvasean




  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 30,746 ✭✭✭✭Galvasean


    Macrauchenia which means 'big lama'.
    This is not a lama!
    Macrauchenia_bw.GIF


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  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 30,746 ✭✭✭✭Galvasean


    Proceratosaurus. It's name implies that it was the ancestor of Ceratosaurus, whwn in fact it was not part of the ceratosaur family at all. It was actually a forerunner of the tyrannosaurs.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 30,746 ✭✭✭✭Galvasean


    Struthiomimus, whose name means 'ostrich mimic',
    struthiomimus.jpg
    , who lived millions of years before the ostrich (Struthio).
    ostrich.jpg
    It was the ostrich who plagiarised him I tell you!


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 30,746 ✭✭✭✭Galvasean


    Megaraptor namunhuaiquii. The namunhuaiquii part of the name refers to the 'lance like' foot claw as it was believed to be a type of dromaeosaur (raptor), but is infact a close relative of Allosaurus and the claw was actually located on the hand.

    Megaraptor_Luis_Rey_300.jpg
    Megaraptor attacking a small titanosaur by Luis V. Rey


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 30,746 ✭✭✭✭Galvasean


    Anyone remember 'Microceratops'?
    2761.jpg
    Picture by Mary Evans

    Well, as it turns out that name was already taken by a wasp (damn bugs) so it's now called Microceratus. That happens an awful lot. Despite being named 'Microceratops' in 1953 the name did not get changed until 2008!


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 5,279 ✭✭✭Adam Khor


    Fun thread :>

    Here's the ones I remember;

    Protosphyraena, a sword-fish look-alike from the Late Cretaceous period; the name means "early barracuda", despite it being unrelated to barracudas (it was also not related to swordfish despite its appearance)

    Protosphyraena.jpg

    Megarachne, a short bodied eurypterid ("sea scorpion") was at first thought to be the largest spider known from prehistory, hence the name. This is what Megarachne actually looked like:

    megarachne_servinei_euripterus_st_naturalist.jpg

    Palorchestes was a tapir-wombat-like animal from the Miocene, Pliocene and Pleistocene of Australia, its name means "ancient leaper" or "ancient dancer" despite it being a big fat hulk of a beast. The name was given by Sir Richard Owen who thought Palorchestes was a giant kangaroo.

    tapiraehnliches-beuteltier-palorchestes-painei-9853.jpg

    Struthiosaurus was an ankylosaur (tank-like dinosaur), but its name means "ostrich lizard"...

    Struthiosaurus.jpg

    As for fun names, there's Ninjemys, a Pleistocene Australian turtle, and yes, it does mean "ninja turtle".

    asth13.jpg

    There's Montypythonoides, a giant prehistoric snake named after, well, Monty Python, although the name is no longer used; it was replaced by Morelia riversleighensis, as it was found that it was too similar to modern day Morelia pythons and likely belonged to the same genus. (Morelia viridis in the pic)

    1.jpg

    And of course, there's this bizarre tribute to Jurassic Park that's Tianchisaurus nedegoapeferima. The specific name honors the main Jurassic Park actors (Sam Neill, Laura Dern, Jeff Goldblum, Richard Attenborough, Bob Peck, Martin Ferrero, Ariana Richards and Martin Ferrero. Notice how everyone forgot about Dennis Nedry...)
    Tianchisaurus was originally called Jurassosaurus (after Jurassic Park!) but it was later changed.

    Tianchisaurus-frankdenota-300x261.jpg

    Finally, there's one of my least favorite dinosaur names, Bambiraptor. The only worst thing they could have done would be to name a tyrannosaur "Winniethepoohsaurus".
    Fortunately, it was recently found that Bambiraptor is most likely a juvenile Saurornitholestes.

    bambiraptor.jpg

    There's many more but I can´t remember just now... but people, let's not forget the most inappropiate, fun and silly name in the history of everything!

    Homo sapiens?? Seriously??

    bean.jpg



    But that, of course, is not paleontology...


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 30,746 ✭✭✭✭Galvasean


    Excellent round up. I'd recommend submitting that to cracked.com and listverse!


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 5,279 ✭✭✭Adam Khor


    Are you on Listverse? I've submitted several lists! :D


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 8,551 ✭✭✭Rubecula


    Brilliant stuff Adam. Had me chuckling into me tea.:pac:


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 1,169 ✭✭✭Alvin T. Grey


    I would vote for any dino whos name can't be pronounced after the second beer..


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 30,746 ✭✭✭✭Galvasean




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  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 8,551 ✭✭✭Rubecula


    I have taken a sudden interest in Rubeosaurus cos of the name. Does that count as a silly name or a silly reason?:pac:


    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rubeosaurus


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 30,746 ✭✭✭✭Galvasean


    "This genus was named by Andrew T. McDonald and John R. Horner in 2010, and the type species is Rubeosaurus ovatus. Formerly this species was assigned to Styracosaurus. "

    The same John R. Horner who claims 1 in 3 species of dinosaur never existed and are in fact just variables of previously known species? Not helping Jack!


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 8,551 ✭✭✭Rubecula


    Yes he raises his ugly head once again. He will only be happy if someone names one after him.

    Something with a small brain and a big head preferably.:pac:


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 30,746 ✭✭✭✭Galvasean




  • Moderators, Recreation & Hobbies Moderators, Science, Health & Environment Moderators, Technology & Internet Moderators Posts: 92,672 Mod ✭✭✭✭Capt'n Midnight




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