# Your favorite scientific names of plants/animals **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [August 20, 2014, 2:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-scientific-names-of-plants-animals/696001 "2014-08-20T14:59:10Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**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:** [August 21, 2014, 4:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-scientific-names-of-plants-animals/696001/41 "2014-08-21T04:11:42Z")
Not a favorite as in “I like it” but it is interesting to me how changes in language and context can make a name that was ok in latin sounds now as a WTF were they thinking when naming this? [_Macaca nigra_](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Celebes_crested_macaque) Double unfortunate sounding name. And it made me cringe when the news about that monkey that took the selfie in that funny copyright case appeared. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2014, 4:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-scientific-names-of-plants-animals/696001/42 "2014-08-21T04:33:15Z")
One of my favorite flowers is [_Clitoria_](http://botit.botany.wisc.edu/Resources/Systematics/Magnoliophyta/Magnoliopsida/Fabales/Fabaceae/Clitoria/Clitoria%20flower%20RK%20.jpg), named for obvious reasons. From Wiki: > [@](#): > > This genus was named after the human female clitoris, for the flowers bear a resemblance to female genitals. Originally the first described species of the genus was given the name Flos clitoridis ternatensibus in 1678 by Rumpf, a German-born botanist employed by the Dutch East India Company. It was regarded as appropriately named by Johann Philipp Breyne in 1747.[2] Many vernacular names of these flowers in different languages are similarly based on references to a woman’s sexual organ.[3] > > There were controversies in the past among botanists regarding the good taste of the naming of the genus. The analogy drew sharp criticism from botanists like James Edward Smith in 1807, Amos Eaton in 1817, Michel Étienne Descourtilz in 1826 and Eaton and Wright in 1840. Some less explicit alternatives, like Vexillaria (Eaton 1817) and Nauchea (Descourtilz 1826), were proposed, but they didn’t prosper and the name Clitoria has survived to this day. As a counterpoint, there are the [Priapulids](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Priapulida), or penis worms. The species depicted is _Priapulus caudatus_, the “little penis with a tail.” ---
**Author:** ![No\_umlaut\_for\_U](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ea5d25/32.png) [@No\_umlaut\_for\_U](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/No_umlaut_for_U)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2014, 5:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-scientific-names-of-plants-animals/696001/43 "2014-08-21T05:14:04Z")
_Salmonella mjordan_. However, I’m not certain whether [this](http://www.apnewsarchive.com/1993/Doctor-Names-Salmonella-Strain-for-Michael-Jordan/id-350a64a4e5acec1cf9646d90b101ee8b) is still proper terminology. Everything _S. enteritidis_ just lacks a certain flair. ---
**Author:** ![sunstone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunstone/32/3372_2.png) [@sunstone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sunstone)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2014, 6:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-scientific-names-of-plants-animals/696001/44 "2014-08-21T06:20:01Z")
My students always liked the genus name Turdus; this genus includes thrushes, blackbirds and the American robin. I personally like Hypsiglena torquata (the night snake, native to parts of the US and Mexico. The cadence and combination of sounds are lovely…I can imagine naming a daughter this name…picture leaning over the porch rail and calling her name to come in at twilight…“Hypsiglena torquata, what are you doing out there? Time to come in…” ---
**Author:** ![Malacandra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Malacandra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malacandra)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2014, 6:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-scientific-names-of-plants-animals/696001/45 "2014-08-21T06:26:06Z")
> [@running\_coach](#): > > And yet all _three_ of you left off badger, badger, badger. 😃 You know that’s just going to mushroom. In similar but not quite the same vein is _[Puffinus puffinus](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manx_shearwater)_, which is of course not a puffin (in fact, [puffins](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atlantic_puffin) are not members of the genus _puffinus_ at all). ---
**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:** [August 21, 2014, 7:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-scientific-names-of-plants-animals/696001/46 "2014-08-21T07:02:58Z")
> [@GIGObuster](#): > > Not a favorite as in “I like it” but it is interesting to me how changes in language and context can make a name that was ok in latin sounds now as a WTF were they thinking when naming this? > [_Macaca nigra_](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Celebes_crested_macaque) > > Double unfortunate sounding name. And it made me cringe when the news about that monkey that took the selfie in that funny copyright case appeared. “Nigra” is just the Latin word for “black.” It’s the “black macaque.” ---
**Author:** ![seodoa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/4af34b/32.png) [@seodoa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/seodoa)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2014, 8:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-scientific-names-of-plants-animals/696001/47 "2014-08-21T08:13:15Z")
Not the name of a plant/animal, but I’ve always enjoyed the whimsical names given to proteins and genes, like [Sonic hedgehog](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sonic_hedgehog) and its inhibitor [Robotnikinin](http://www.techtransfer.harvard.edu/technologies/tech.php?case=3216). ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2014, 8:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-scientific-names-of-plants-animals/696001/48 "2014-08-21T08:31:54Z")
Do mushrooms count? Amanita phaloides is the most poisonous of the amanitas; its name means phallus-shaped and tends to cause constipated stares in certain populations (say, prudish biology teachers). Amanita muscaria is the only non-poisonous one, it’s the stereotypical toadstool. If we can leave living things aside, when my Orgo teacher first mentioned “copulative reactions” he said “you may laugh, but this time only. And yes, it’s their actual name, I’m not making it up to make you guys look congested.” He was a Jesuit in his 60s and unlike his 20sh year old students he could say “copulative” without getting bug-eyed. ---
**Author:** ![Baker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bb73d2/32.png) [@Baker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baker)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2014, 8:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-scientific-names-of-plants-animals/696001/49 "2014-08-21T08:47:35Z")
> [@simster](#): > > Accelerati incredibilus and Carnivorous vulgaris … Also _eatibus anythingabus_ ---
**Author:** ![GoodOmens](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/d26b3c/32.png) [@GoodOmens](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GoodOmens)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2014, 11:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-scientific-names-of-plants-animals/696001/50 "2014-08-21T11:14:44Z")
> [@Miss\_Mapp](#): > > My favorite of this type is _Gorilla gorilla_, or _Gorilla gorilla gorilla_–in case you missed what that big ape might be the first time around. This is definitely my favorite, because you pretty much imagine that this is what a gorilla calls himself. ---
**Author:** ![Colophon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f05b48/32.png) [@Colophon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colophon)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2014, 11:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-scientific-names-of-plants-animals/696001/51 "2014-08-21T11:24:01Z")
I had an _Echinofossulocactus zacatecasensis_ when I was younger. ---
**Author:** ![Anaglyph](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ed8c4c/32.png) [@Anaglyph](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anaglyph)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2014, 11:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-scientific-names-of-plants-animals/696001/52 "2014-08-21T11:47:13Z")
I like the sound (and the flowers) of [Liriodendron tulipifera](https://www.google.ch/search?hl=de&site=imghp&tbm=isch&source=hp&biw=1577&bih=1235&q=Lyriodendron+tulipifera&oq=Lyriodendron+tulipifera&gs_l=img.12...1057.10572.0.13269.23.5.0.18.18.0.46.220.5.5.0....0...1ac.1.51.img..18.5.219.HIoZ_7EuK0o#hl=de&q=liriodendron+tulipifera+flower&tbm=isch&imgdii=_) ---
**Author:** ![BaldDudePeekskill](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/b5e925/32.png) [@BaldDudePeekskill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BaldDudePeekskill)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2014, 12:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-scientific-names-of-plants-animals/696001/53 "2014-08-21T12:14:51Z")
> [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](#): > > Damn, scooped. > > Okay then, Mephitis mephitis (offensive stench x 2). Me three! I guess homo erectus is a close second. ---
**Author:** ![bup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/6bbea6/32.png) [@bup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bup)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2014, 3:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-scientific-names-of-plants-animals/696001/54 "2014-08-21T15:21:49Z")
> [@RivkahChaya](#): > > I almost forgot:\* [Dracorex hogwartsia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dracorex)\*. The Hogwarts dragon. I love that. > [@jtur88](#): > > When I looked up that spider, I found a link to this interesting Wiki list: > > [List of organisms named after famous people - Wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_animals_named_after_celebrities) Hey - that list is missing _[Hapalopus aldanus](http://www.tarantupedia.com/theraphosinae/hapalopus/hapalopus-aldanus)_ (tarantula named for Alan Alda). ---
**Author:** ![Tapioca\_Dextrin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Tapioca\_Dextrin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tapioca_Dextrin)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2014, 3:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-scientific-names-of-plants-animals/696001/55 "2014-08-21T15:54:19Z")
But it does have [Crikey steveirwini](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crikey_steveirwini) ---
**Author:** ![Doctor\_Jackson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/doctor_jackson/32/32_2.png) [@Doctor\_Jackson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doctor_Jackson)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2014, 5:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-scientific-names-of-plants-animals/696001/56 "2014-08-21T17:10:20Z")
> [@c\_carol](#): > > I like “_Lama glama_”. The sex of this particular species can be determined by whether the individual is equiped with a Lama glama ding dong. ---
**Author:** ![Zerc](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/82dd89/32.png) [@Zerc](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zerc)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2014, 6:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-scientific-names-of-plants-animals/696001/57 "2014-08-21T18:28:26Z")
I quite like Smilodon fatalis for the sabre-toothed cat. I first saw this in an [xkcd](http://xkcd.com/1056/) comic about possible Mac OS X names. ---
**Author:** ![EmilyG](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/emilyg/32/364_2.png) [@EmilyG](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EmilyG)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2014, 9:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-scientific-names-of-plants-animals/696001/58 "2014-08-21T21:48:04Z")
I like the name of _Balaenoptera musculus_, the blue whale. Apparently the species name means “little mouse” or “mouse-like,” in what may be a joke. ---
**Author:** ![Ulfreida](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ulfreida/32/8014_2.png) [@Ulfreida](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ulfreida)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2014, 10:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-scientific-names-of-plants-animals/696001/59 "2014-08-21T22:16:02Z")
> [@Nava](#): > > Do mushrooms count? > > Amanita phaloides is the most poisonous of the amanitas; its name means phallus-shaped and tends to cause constipated stares in certain populations (say, prudish biology teachers). Amanita muscaria is the only non-poisonous one, it’s the stereotypical toadstool. > … There are a number of inaccuracies in this paragraph. The true part is that Amanita phalloides (Death Cap) and the closely related A. ocreata etc. (Destroying Angel), are indeed extremely toxic, in fact cause about 90% of wild mushroom eating fatalities. They are large and handsome and edible-looking, and also mimic, in some stages, the eminently edible and common Agaricus campestris (wild version of your grocery-store mushrooms), and also the perfectly edible puffball. The reason the toxic Amanitas are so deadly is that they have a long latency period with no symptoms, during which they are busily destroying your liver. However, A.muscaria, Fly Agaric, which is the one with the white-flecked, brilliant red cap, is not edible, as a food. It is a hallucinogen which almost always is accompanied by violent nausea. There are some very delicious Amanita species (A.calyptroderma, A.ceasaria), and some that are edible but not anything special. Know your fungi. Also, not sure if prudery and teaching biology commonly go together. I certainly have never met a biologist who titters and blushes about latin nomenclature. Leering, perhaps. ---
**Author:** ![bibliophage](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bibliophage/32/7615_2.png) [@bibliophage](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bibliophage)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2014, 12:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-scientific-names-of-plants-animals/696001/60 "2014-08-22T00:36:50Z")
I get a laugh out of [_Aha ha_](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aha_ha), an Australian wasp. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-scientific-names-of-plants-animals/696001.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-scientific-names-of-plants-animals/696001.md?page=4)