Sauropod Vertebra Picture of the Week

This is not ‘Nam. This is Latin. There are rules.

The term for a small growth off an organ or body is diverticulum, singular, or diverticula, plural. There are no diverticulae or God forbid diverticuli, no matter what you might read in some papers. Diverticuli is a word – it’s the genitive form of diverticulum. But I’ve never seen it used that way in an anatomy or paleo paper. Diverticuli and diverticulae as alt-plurals for diverticulum are abominations that must be stomped out with extreme prejudice. If you want to get cute with alternative spellings, Wiktionary says you can use deverticulum. Wiktionary does not warn you that you will be mocked for doing so, but it is true nonetheless.

Stop jacking up straightforward anatomical terms, authors who should know better.

Here’s a swan. Unlike diverticuli and diverticulae, this unlikely morphology is real.