Nutty Nomenclature

All species of organism are given their own specific name by the taxonomist who first describes them. Every now and again the taxonomists allow themselves to have a little bit of fun. This is our guide to some more mischievously named species.

Name: Gluteus minimus

Don’t get it? Look up 'gluteus maximus' on Google and work it out from there.

What is it? Brilliantly, it is a "fossil of uncertain affinity".

Where is found? Iowa.

When was it first named? 1975.

Who deserves the credit? Palaeontologists Richard Davis and Holmes A. Semken Jr. Both men are still active in the fossil field; these days Prof Semken spends his time unearthing enormous, prehistoric sloths.

Click to enlarge

Is there a picture? It's a bit grainy, but this is the best we can do. The beast is a funny looking thing. At only about a centimetre across, it has been likened to fish teeth, molluscs and vertebrate otoliths (particles of calcium carbonate found in the inner ear of, for example, fish). However, the funny fossils don't fit properly into any category - they remain a mystery.

Check out some other weird species names here.

Null's other regular features:

Monday: Phunny Phobias
Wednesday: Doctor Doctor
Thursday: Peculiar Periodicals
Friday: End of week timewasters

Title image: Chris Withers
Main image with the kind permission of Science

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