# The Return of the Brontosaurus! **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [April 7, 2015, 1:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-return-of-the-brontosaurus/717036 "2015-04-07T13:57:20Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2015, 1:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-return-of-the-brontosaurus/717036/1 "2015-04-07T13:57:20Z")
Apparently the skeletons originally designated _Brontosaurus_, then later re-classified as the already-named _Apatosaurus_, have now been found to differ in so many details that they’re considering re-naming it _Brontosaurus_: > **['Extinct' No Longer? Brontosaurus May Make a Comeback](https://news.yahoo.com/extinct-no-longer-brontosaurus-may-comeback-115118481.html)** > > The Brontosaurus is back. Because A. excelsus was famously first known as Brontosaurus until 1903, the species would revert back to that original name and become Brontosaurus once again. It's a proposal that excites some paleontologists and leaves... This doesn’t mean that old rounded head is coming back, though. That head with its straight-up peglike teeth was based on that of _Camarasaurus_, since the American Museum specimen was lacking a skull. It has become the standard head of Brontosaurus in all those Charles Knight paintings, as well as in movies from _the Lost World_ (1925), through _King Kong_ (1933) , to \* The Animal World\* and _Dinosaurus_ and, arguably, to _King Kong_ (2005). The real Brontosaurus head, like the Apatosaurus head, looked more buck-toothed, with front teeth extending forward. ---
**Author:** ![Hari\_Seldon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hari_seldon/32/5173_2.png) [@Hari\_Seldon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hari_Seldon)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2015, 2:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-return-of-the-brontosaurus/717036/2 "2015-04-07T14:10:49Z")
Well, Bully for Brontosaurus. (I think I am quoting Steven J. Gould.) ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2015, 2:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-return-of-the-brontosaurus/717036/3 "2015-04-07T14:19:43Z")
Turns out the real brontosauruses were hiding out on the planet Pluto. ---
**Author:** ![MrAtoz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@MrAtoz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrAtoz)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2015, 2:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-return-of-the-brontosaurus/717036/4 "2015-04-07T14:58:14Z")
Excellent news, as I have long preferred the name _Brontosaurus_. It’s just cooler, and everybody knows that. Observe that in the classic screwball comedy, _Bringing Up Baby_, Cary Grant consistently refers to the beast in question as a Brontosaurus. By contrast, I would bet almost any amount of money that Cary Grant never said the word “Apatosaurus” in his life. If “Brontosaurus” is good enough for Cary, it’s good enough for me, the scientific community be damned! 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2015, 3:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-return-of-the-brontosaurus/717036/5 "2015-04-07T15:32:00Z")
> [@MrAtoz](#): > > Excellent news, as I have long preferred the name _Brontosaurus_. It’s just cooler, and everybody knows that. The Thunder Lizard. 😉 It just makes me smile. ---
**Author:** ![Kenm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/bc79bd/32.png) [@Kenm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kenm)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2015, 4:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-return-of-the-brontosaurus/717036/6 "2015-04-07T16:18:39Z")
Well, as long as [**the theory of the brontosaurus**](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cAYDiPizDIs) can stand unassailable — and that’s the important thing — despite the fashion whims of science — Pluto, anyone? — there is little cause to person the ramparts. If brontosaurus is good enough for Anne Elk, it’s good enough for me — and it should be good enough for you. ---
**Author:** ![GIGObuster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gigobuster/32/421_2.png) [@GIGObuster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GIGObuster)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2015, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-return-of-the-brontosaurus/717036/7 "2015-04-07T16:57:37Z")
Nice to see that old Flinstones joke coming relevant again. (In a burger joint) “Give me a Bronto. Pronto!” 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2015, 4:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-return-of-the-brontosaurus/717036/8 "2015-04-07T16:58:30Z")
I hope so! > **[Brontosaurus dino name is revived](https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-32205289)** > > The iconic name Brontosaurus, which was once used to describe a titanic family of dinosaurs, is being revived after it was killed off more than a century ago. ---
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2015, 5:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-return-of-the-brontosaurus/717036/9 "2015-04-07T17:04:11Z")
Yes. According to [this](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=753801) thread. ---
**Author:** ![Jophiel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jophiel/32/66_2.png) [@Jophiel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jophiel)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2015, 5:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-return-of-the-brontosaurus/717036/10 "2015-04-07T17:09:34Z")
Waaaaaaayyyy down at the bottom of the Yahoo! article is the caveat: > [@](#): > > If anything is certain, it’s that bringing back _Brontosaurus_ will require a lot more debate (and, ultimately, a ruling by the International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature). > > “For sure, there will be other researchers that are maybe not convinced or have their own evidence against the separation of the two,” Tschopp said. “In the end, this is how science works.” …so maybe don’t order the cake just yet. ---
**Author:** ![Kobal2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kobal2/32/20_2.png) [@Kobal2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kobal2)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2015, 5:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-return-of-the-brontosaurus/717036/11 "2015-04-07T17:10:51Z")
Awww, I thought this was going to be about a crazy cloning plan going on in Japan or Russia or something, my pants were already halfway down. You kids and your click-baity titles ! ---
**Author:** ![RivkahChaya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rivkahchaya/32/8919_2.png) [@RivkahChaya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RivkahChaya)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2015, 5:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-return-of-the-brontosaurus/717036/12 "2015-04-07T17:10:56Z")
Hmmm. I liked having the name “Brontosaurus” for the mistake that persisted for so long, and was such an iconic dinosaur-- the Apatosaur skeleton with the Camarasaur head. What are we going to call that now? It’s sort of like “Piltdown Man,” albeit, Brontosaurus was never a hoax, in that it persisted for so long, and affected theory and study and research for so long, it’s hard to just erase it from the record. I understand that the rules of scientific nomenclature dictate that that species, if it is a species, must be called “Brontosaurus,” but what will we call the old mistake? ---
**Author:** ![DrumBum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e79b87/32.png) [@DrumBum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrumBum)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2015, 5:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-return-of-the-brontosaurus/717036/13 "2015-04-07T17:13:46Z")
I guess Cecil will have to update [his story.](http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/371/is-it-true-the-brontosaurus-never-really-existed) ---
**Author:** ![lieu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c2a13f/32.png) [@lieu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lieu)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2015, 5:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-return-of-the-brontosaurus/717036/14 "2015-04-07T17:23:24Z")
> [@RivkahChaya](#): > > Hmmm. I liked having the name “Brontosaurus” for the mistake that persisted for so long, and was such an iconic dinosaur-- the Apatosaur skeleton with the Camarasaur head. As that head elevated to such wuthering heights I would have preferred _“Brontesaurus”_, but I’m probably alone in that regard. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2015, 5:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-return-of-the-brontosaurus/717036/15 "2015-04-07T17:34:51Z")
> [@lieu](#): > > As that head elevated to such wuthering heights I would have preferred _“Brontesaurus”_, but I’m probably alone in that regard. I’ve seen the “Bronte Saurus” joke in _National Lampoon_ (if memory serves). It’s shown up elsewhere, too: > **[BrontëBlog](http://bronteblog.blogspot.com/2014/11/batman-vs-robotic-emily-bronte-saurus.html)** > > The life and works of the Brontë Sisters... today [http://www.weeklystandard.com/articles/brontë-saurus](http://www.weeklystandard.com/articles/bront%C3%AB-saurus) > **[Photo Storage](https://s626.photobucket.com/user/ascoventry/media/bronte-saurus.gif.html)** > > Store your photos and videos online with secure storage from Photobucket. Available on iOS, Android and desktop. Securely backup your memories and sign up today! You can’t do these with _Apatosaurus_. Best I’ve seen with that is a lame _A POT asaurus_ gag. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2015, 5:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-return-of-the-brontosaurus/717036/16 "2015-04-07T17:39:23Z")
> [@Hari\_Seldon](#): > > Well, Bully for Brontosaurus. (I think I am quoting Steven J. Gould.) Yeah, that’s the first thing I thought of, too. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![lieu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c2a13f/32.png) [@lieu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lieu)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2015, 5:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-return-of-the-brontosaurus/717036/17 "2015-04-07T17:39:26Z")
Well dang, I guess there are worse sources to get ninja’d by. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2015, 5:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-return-of-the-brontosaurus/717036/18 "2015-04-07T17:46:37Z")
> [@CalMeacham](#): > > You can’t do these with _Apatosaurus_. > > Best I’ve seen with that is a lame _A POT asaurus_ gag. You say Apahto and I say Apayto. ---
**Author:** ![Half\_Man\_Half\_Wit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/half_man_half_wit/32/21766_2.png) [@Half\_Man\_Half\_Wit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Half_Man_Half_Wit)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2015, 6:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-return-of-the-brontosaurus/717036/19 "2015-04-07T18:00:43Z")
> [@CalMeacham](#): > > I’ve seen the “Bronte Saurus” joke in _National Lampoon_ (if memory serves). > > It’s shown up elsewhere, too: > > [Batman vs the robotic Emily Brontë-saurus ~ BrontëBlog](http://bronteblog.blogspot.com/2014/11/batman-vs-robotic-emily-bronte-saurus.html) > > [http://www.weeklystandard.com/articles/brontë-saurus](http://www.weeklystandard.com/articles/bront%C3%AB-saurus) > > [Photo Storage](http://s626.photobucket.com/user/ascoventry/media/bronte-saurus.gif.html) > You can’t do these with _Apatosaurus_. > Best I’ve seen with that is a lame _A POT asaurus_ gag. Apathysaurus can’t be bothered to come up with a joke. ---
**Author:** ![gnoitall](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/bb73d2/32.png) [@gnoitall](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gnoitall)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2015, 6:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-return-of-the-brontosaurus/717036/20 "2015-04-07T18:23:36Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > Turns out the real brontosauruses were hiding out on the planet Pluto. The other problem is that they were calling themselves “[nobodysaurus](http://dilbert.com/strip/1989-07-19)”. So nobody did. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-return-of-the-brontosaurus/717036.md?page=2)