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Botanic nomenclature (lemmy.world)
submitted 2 months ago by angrystego@lemmy.world to c/science_memes@mander.xyz
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[-] lvxferre@mander.xyz 25 points 2 months ago

I have no idea on why they decided to call the common European frog Rana temporaria, but "temporary frog" sounds really funny. "Eh this species name is just temporary, I swear".

I'm also kind of surprised I couldn't find a single species called merdicula (little shit). Seems like the sort of humour some would have.

[-] teft@piefed.social 17 points 2 months ago* (last edited 2 months ago)

Pretty sure that temporaria is related in this case to temporal, not temporary. It'd be like frog of the times or frog of the right season or something like that.

I could be wrong though.

As for little shits I would try something with copro- in it. That's the greek word for shit. Like coprophage is a shiteater or Copromorphidae are a family of moths that have shit like camouflage.

[-] lvxferre@mander.xyz 11 points 2 months ago* (last edited 2 months ago)

Temporal: that would explain it. But it still sounds funny.

Copromorphidae: I stand corrected. Shit-shaped moths!

I also found a frog called Allobates niputidea. That's from Spanish though, not Latin. (ni puta idea = no fucking idea.)

[-] LeapSecond@lemmy.zip 11 points 2 months ago

Looking for the backstory of the frog name, here's another gem from here.

Now, the caterpillar remains alive for a while as the baby wasps eat it from the inside, bending and squirming as it becomes desiccated and dies. These wiggly movements made the scientists think of Shakira, and thus the species Aleiodes shakirae immortalized the Colombian singer in the annals of zoology.

Zoologists are fun.

[-] idiomaddict@lemmy.world 9 points 2 months ago

I’m still a huge fan of fruit flies. Drosophila melanogaster= yellow bellied garbage lover

[-] angrystego@lemmy.world 6 points 2 months ago

Black bellied, but yeah!

[-] kaklerbitmap@lemmy.world 10 points 2 months ago

A bunch of species of tarantula in the Thrixopelma genus recently got moved to their own genus Ewok. This genus includes the newly discovered Ewok aycarumba.

https://wsc.nmbe.ch/reference/18853

[-] shane@feddit.nl 8 points 2 months ago

Gorilla gorilla gorilla

[-] teft@piefed.social 2 points 2 months ago

I prefer Boops boops. Pronounced Boh-ops.

[-] DeltaWingDragon@sh.itjust.works 1 points 2 months ago

I like Upupa epops

[-] Hupf@feddit.org 7 points 2 months ago

They did it for the Luzulz

[-] the_artic_one@programming.dev 5 points 2 months ago* (last edited 2 months ago)

Also "sub-", at least in mycological names.

The other day, I read that there's a mushroom called "Agaricus subsubensis" and I felt like I was being trolled.

[-] rants_unnecessarily@piefed.social 4 points 2 months ago

Mamalian nomenclature:

Lynx McLynxface

[-] DeltaWingDragon@sh.itjust.works 2 points 2 months ago

Fox McFoxface

[-] hessenjunge@discuss.tchncs.de 3 points 2 months ago

Aside from Amorphophallus holding a big wang in your face there will always be Rollulus rouloul for the lulz.

[-] angrystego@lemmy.world 4 points 2 months ago

While we're at it, let's make an honorable mention of the naughtiest of all Amorphophallus species, A. fornicatus.

this post was submitted on 01 Mar 2026
150 points (96.9% liked)

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