Identifying a new species of animal is not an easy task, and the scientific naming system or binomial nomenclature helps scientists classify and organize various organisms on Earth. Developed by Carolus Linnaeus in the 18th century, the system involves assigning each species a two-part name in Latin.
Most of the time, the system results in noble and fancy-sounding species names. Other times, not so much. Here are examples of species with strange or hilarious scientific names, either intentionally or by accident.
1. Australian Wasp (Aha ha)
Not all animal species have a common name in every language. This is the case with Aha ha, a further unspecified Australian wasp.
In 1977, entomologist Arnold Menke first described the insect after receiving it in a box of various bugs. After seeing the wasp, he exclaimed, "Aha! A new genus!" His fellow researcher Eric Grisell responded with a derisive, "Ha!" As a joke, Menke decided to name the Australian wasp in honor of their exchange. It was indeed a new genus, that is why he got to name it.
2. Horse Fly (Scaptia beyonceae)
In 1981, scientists discovered a species of horse fly, but it was only in 2011 when it was described by researchers. The experts took note of the insect's notable feature and used it to come up with the perfect name.
The horse fly has a glorious set of golden hairs on its rear end, like being "bootylicious". Taking this as a sign, the scientists named the insect after Beyonce, who also shares a birth year with the discovery of this species.
3. Western Lowland Gorilla (Gorilla gorilla gorilla)
The western lowland gorilla belongs to the genus Gorilla. Its species is also gorilla, hence it is named Gorilla gorilla. Meanwhile, its subspecies is also gorilla, making its full official name Gorilla gorilla gorilla.
4. Bogue (Boops boops)
Bogue fish is a species of seabream native to the eastern Atlantic. This animal has big eyes as its most defining trait. Because of this, the ancient Greeks named the fish "boops" which literally means "cow-eye". When it was time for Linnaeus to assign the bogue a scientific name in 1758, he seemed to get lazy. Since the fish has two eyes, he just repeated the original Greek name, giving rise to the scientific name Boops boops.
5. Green Iguana (Iguana iguana)
The green iguana is the archetypal species of iguana, described by Linnaeus himself in 1758. This animal is generally considered to be the true, essential, original iguana species. All other kinds of iguana are just specialized subspecies of the green iguana. Because of this, the reptile received the incredibly unimaginative name of Iguana iguana.
6. Conquered lorikeet (Vini vidivici)
In the case of the extinct conquered lorikeet, the sense of humor applied to its scientific name is somewhat darker.
This species of parrot is known only through fossils found on Polynesian islands, since it has gone at the hands of humans 700 to 1,300 years ago. Its species name alludes to the Latin phrase "veni, vidi, vici" which literally means "I came, I saw, I conquered".
The meaning of its scientific name may be associated with the prehistoric condition in the Marquesas and elsewhere in Polynesia, where people arrived on an island, saw the native parrot, and then conquered them. As a result, only the bones of the unfortunate birds are left behind.
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