New ROM dinosaur named after ‘Ghostbusters’ villain
Posted May 10, 2017 8:13 am.
Last Updated May 10, 2017 3:27 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
A new (OK, it’s 75 million years old) dinosaur discovered by scientists at the ROM has been named after a “Ghostbusters” villain.
Zuul, The Destroyer of Shins, is an ankylosaur, with one of the most complete skeletons ever found. It also has a “short snout, long horns behind the eyes and on the cheeks, and gnarly face.”
With that in face in mind, scientists dubbed it Zuul. More specifically, Zuul crurivastator.
In the 1984 movie “Ghostbusters,” Zuul (also known as “The Gatekeeper”) possesses Dana Barrett, played by actor Sigourney Weaver. Barrett chillingly tells Bill Murray’s Peter Venkman, “There is no Dana. There is only Zuul.”
The scientific name Zuul crurivastator refers to both the face of the dinosaur and the body. Crurivastator means “destroyer of shins.” The museum noted this skeleton “has an amazingly preserved spiky tail and tail club.”
Ankylosaurs could “inflict serious damage on opponents, such as predatory theropods,” with their tails, or they may even use them against each other in a battle for “mates and territory,” the ROM said.
The dinosaur was found in Montana, very close to the Alberta border. It is not currently on display at the museum.
Click here to find out more about the dinosaur, or watch a video below.
