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Author: Theriocephalus

Jun 12th 2018 at 5:53:16 AM

I think at the moment the description spends too much time describing how nomenclature works in real life and not enough describing how the trope is used -- it seems like around seven paragraphs talking about how this works officially, and then a sentence at the end hinting at how this trope is used in fiction. Personally, I would expand on how and why this is used in fiction and move the real life examples in the second-to-last paragraph to the example list under Real Life.

Oh, and some examples from CanisLatinicus:

* WesternAnimation/LooneyTunes:
** Many of ''WesternAnimation/WileECoyoteAndTheRoadrunner'' cartoons introduce the pair with fake scientific names usually derived in this manner. Examples include ''Speedometrus Rapidus'' for the Roadrunner, and ''Famishus Famishus'' for the Coyote. One cartoon even gave the Roadrunner's "beep, beep" a scientific name ("beepus-beepus").
*** Subverted in 2003's "Whizzard of Ow" in which the actual binomial names were used: ''Canis latrans'' for the Coyote (barking dog -- ironic when you realize Wile E. almost never speaks) and ''Geococcyx californianus'' for the Road-runner (Californian cuckoo that runs on land).
*** The Bugs/Wile E. outing "Rabbit's Feat" has Wile E. in pursuit of the common western rabbit. "Rabbitus Idioticus Delicious... I believe that's the scientific term for it."
*** And in "Stop! Look! And Hasten!" Wile E.'s Burmese Tiger Trap catches [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin a Burmese Tiger]], ''Surprisibus! Surprisibus!''
** ''WesternAnimation/TinyToonAdventures'' had one short called ''"Love Stinks"'', which introduced Calamity Coyote as "''Devius Coyotius''", Little Beeper as "''Expedious Birdius''", and Fifi le Fume as "''Sexius Skunkius''". [[GettingCrapPastTheRadar Amazing that the censors let that pass...]]
* ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'':
** One episode gave a direct nod to the [[WesternAnimation/LooneyTunes Road Runner]] series by having a freeze-framed Bart and Homer identified as "''Bratus Donthaveacowious''", and "''Homo Neadrathalus''" respectively.
** Another ''Road Runner'' parody appears at the beginning of "[[Recap/TheSimpsonsS22E15TheScorpionsTale The Scorpion's Tale]]", where a photorealistic roadrunner and coyote and labeled ''Propertus Warnerbros'' and ''Copyrightus MCMXLIX'' respectively. Otto then runs over the roadrunner and is labeled ''Licensis suspendibus''.