Synonyms of Eotyrannus

["Jaime A. Headden" <qilongia@yahoo.com>]

Just read Naish's Dinopress article on *Eotyrannus*, and came across a
lovely bit of unintended but potentially damaging taxonomic quibbles and
the reason why people need to be careful about the dissemination of nomina
nuda.

  In 1998, prior to the _formal_ announcement and during the high-press
frenzy of the coverage of the discovery of this animal and preparation
(between 1997-1999), various papers published so-called names applied to
the specimen in question, MIWG 1997.550, including the following:

  Kelly, J. 1998. Is this man our Indiana Jones? _The Daily Mail_
(newspaper), dated 10-7-1998.

  Published were both _Gavinosaurus_ and _Lengosaurus_, in response to the
discoverer, Gavin Leng (honored with the specific epithet of *E. lengi*).
What nasty outcomings for short-sightedness. These are effectively nomina
nuda and subjective junior synonyms of *Eotyrannus* and completely,
utterly useless to science.

  To the news media who could care less (not that the entirety do, just
those who don't): Please, people, show a little respect when playing with
names in publications.

=====
Jaime A. Headden

  Little steps are often the hardest to take.  We are too used to making leaps 
in the face of adversity, that a simple skip is so hard to do.  We should all 
learn to walk soft, walk small, see the world around us rather than zoom by it.

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