Trachodon and other dubious species reused names

[Zhuchengotyrant]

Hey,
I really like the names of certain dubious dinosaurs, or junior synonyms. Among my favorites are Trachodon mirabilis, Antrodemus valens, and Stigyvenator. So my question is: can scientists reuse names from dubious genera to name newly discovered, distinct specimen? Thanks, I really love those names! 

[Lanthanotus]

That's a very good question and the short anser I can provide is, I do not know....

On first thought I'd say, if the name is deemed invalid for a certain species (because, as in case for Trachodon it is merged with a fromer other species because their remains were found to be identical) the formerly given name is free to be used for another species to be announced. However, if future taxonomic revelations show, that the old name has priority, you'd be in trouble if the name is forwarded to another species.

I tried to look up the issue in the code of the ICZN however, its a voluminous work and I didn't dare to read through the better part of it to find out. As we have some professional paleontologists and biologists here, I think some will have the answer at hand

[Zhuchengotyrant]

Thanks for the insight, I think you may be right, and hopefully the paleontologists and biologists here give a definite answer, as you suggested.

[Reptilia]

Always liked better the original proposed name Acracanthus, rather than Acrocanthosaurus. I seem to remember that in my dino encyclopedia, back in the early nineties, it was called like that.

[BlueKrono]

Case in point: Brontosaurus.

[Dinoguy2]

A name can't be reused, even if it's for an "invalid " species. However, scientists have reused names with slight changes. Ultrasaurus vs. Ultrasauros (both now invalid!), Eotrachodon, Eobrontosaurus, etc.

[CityRaptor]

Also Leviathan. Was used for a species of Mastodon by Koch in 1814, but turned out to be a Junior Synonym. Hence the prehistoric whale is called Livyatan.

[WarrenJB]

Case in point: Brontosaurus.

Yup!

I have to say I miss the name Trachodon. It was in some of the first dinosaur books I read, and trips off the tongue nicely. Trachodon. Trachodon. Trrrrrachodon.

Agathaumas sylvestris, anybody? Great wonder of the forest. Fantastic. Whatever else you could say about Cope, he had a knack for lyrical or evocative names.

[Appalachiosaurus]

Sorry, but no. If a name is used and deemed a nomen dubium, synonym, or invalid it can never be used again. The only way to bring Trachodon back is if you can prove it's different from Edmontosaurus.

[BlueKrono]

Sorry, but no. If a name is used and deemed a nomen dubium, synonym, or invalid it can never be used again. The only way to bring Trachodon back is if you can prove it's different from Edmontosaurus.

That's what happened with Apatosaurus/Brontosaurus, correct? And WarrenJB, Agathaumus is an excellent, memorable name.

[Appalachiosaurus]

Sorry, but no. If a name is used and deemed a nomen dubium, synonym, or invalid it can never be used again. The only way to bring Trachodon back is if you can prove it's different from Edmontosaurus.

That's what happened with Apatosaurus/Brontosaurus, correct? And WarrenJB, Agathaumus is an excellent, memorable name.

Yeah, a huge study on Diplodocid dinosaurs revealed the the differences between Brontosaurus and Apatosaurus are greater than the differences between Dinheirosaurus and Supersaurus. So Brontosaurus was brought back while Dinheirosaurus was sunk.

[Reptilia]

Aren't also Anatotitan and Anatosaurus synonyms of Edmontosaurus?

[Appalachiosaurus]

Aren't also Anatotitan and Anatosaurus synonyms of Edmontosaurus?

For now, yes. However, there is a push to separate the two species into two genera, which would bring Anatosaurus back.

[stargatedalek]

Aren't also Anatotitan and Anatosaurus synonyms of Edmontosaurus?

For now, yes. However, there is a push to separate the two species into two genera, which would bring Anatosaurus back.

That argument relied heavily upon Ugrunaaluk being it's own genus, and now it's also been sunk.

[Reptilia]

So Edmontosaurus and Anatosaurus would be two different genera, while Anatotitan a synonym of Edmontosaurus?

[Appalachiosaurus]

So Edmontosaurus and Anatosaurus would be two different genera, while Anatotitan a synonym of Edmontosaurus?

No, Anatotitan would be synonymous with Anatosaurus. Though, like Star above said, it is really just a hypothesis.

[Reptilia]

Oh, got it. The name I prefer is always the one that gets dumped, Anatotitan is another one like Acracanthus that I saw in my childhood books.

[Dinoguy2]

Sorry, but no. If a name is used and deemed a nomen dubium, synonym, or invalid it can never be used again. The only way to bring Trachodon back is if you can prove it's different from Edmontosaurus.

That's what happened with Apatosaurus/Brontosaurus, correct? And WarrenJB, Agathaumus is an excellent, memorable name.

No, that's not a case of a name getting re-used, it's a case of a name thought to be invalid actually becoming valid again. It's still based on the same specimens it always was. The question of this thread is about invalid names being reused for a NEW species.

Nobody thinks Trachodon is the same as Edmontosaurus, by the way. It can't be because Trachodon is a much older name! It's a nomen dubium based only on random teeth, not a synonym of a better known species. The only way to bring Trachodon back would be to prove those teeth can be confidently assigned to one particular hadrosaur species and are not just generic to all hadrosaurs. Brachylophosaurus might be a candidate to look at since it's from around the same time and place.

[stargatedalek]

Sometimes they'll get re-used as specific names however, like Carcharocles megalodon. That ones even more annoying since the original had always remained in use.

[Dinoguy2]

Sometimes they'll get re-used as specific names however, like Carcharocles megalodon. That ones even more annoying since the original had always remained in use.

"Megalodon" was always the species name, it was never a genus. The original was Carcharodon megalodon. It just got transferred to a new genus (like Brontosaurus excelsus -> Apatosaurus excelsus back to -> Brontosaurus excelsus, except nobody ever called it just "Excelsus").