Horridus and Triceratops

Text style guide

This guide aims to:

• Help staff incorporate the Horridus brand into copy in a clear and consistent manner
• Help audiences clearly distinguish between all Triceratops and our fossil Horridus

This guide is focused on the written word and as such does not provide specific information on speaking about Horridus, although some aspects may be relevant. Note that formal scientific writing has its own conventions.

If you have any questions about your text, contact Sonja Dechian at [email protected].
 

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When should I use Horridus versus Triceratops?

The name Horridus refers specifically to the Melbourne Museum fossil.

It is important to differentiate general statements about all Triceratops from specific statements about the fossil Horridus.

When referring to the fossil, you can use the name Horridus:

• Horridus the Triceratops is at Melbourne Museum.

When you are sharing general information about all Triceratops, you can use the genus or species name:

• Triceratops lived in the late Cretaceous period.
• Triceratops horridus is one of the best-studied species of dinosaur.

Sometimes you will need to use both. For example:

• The giant head of a Triceratops made up about a third of its total body length. Horridus’s skull weighs 261kg and is 99% complete.
• By studying Horridus the museum’s palaeontologists can learn more about how Triceratops moved.
   

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Introducing Horridus

The first time you name Horridus within a piece of text, state clearly who Horridus is. Include a description such as:

• Horridus the Triceratops
• Horridus, the Melbourne Museum Triceratops

You can then use the name freely to refer to the fossil.

Because Horridus is not a widely recognised name, it may make sense to explain it, for example:

• Our Triceratops belongs to the species Triceratops horridus, but is affectionately known as Horridus.
• Horridus is the name we’ve given to the Melbourne Museum Triceratops. It comes from Triceratops horridus, the species to which Horridus belongs.

Horridus is a proper noun and must always have a capital letter.
 

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Scientific language

Horridus is an informal name, or nickname, given to the fossil.

The fossil is an example of the species Triceratops horridus.

As with all animal or plant names:

• the genus is in italics and has an initial capital
• the species is in italics and is written in lower case.

Because Triceratops is the genus name, it is always written in italics with a capital letter. The exception is in titles/headings where italics may be inappropriate.
 

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Pronoun use

Because the sex of the Triceratops is unknown, it is not correct to use gendered pronouns when talking about Horridus.

• Do not use ‘he’, ‘she’ or ‘it’ to describe Horridus.

Instead, use gender neutral language to talk about Horridus. You can do this by using the singular ‘they’, or by avoiding pronouns altogether.

Some examples of singular ‘they’:

• Horridus was found in Montana, where they lived about 67 million years ago.
• When Horridus was alive they ate plants.

Because singular ‘they’ is not commonly used for animals it may be misread as a plural, or cause readers to misconstrue the subject of the sentence. Consider this example:

• On arrival in Melbourne the crates were unpacked and every bone in Horridus’ body had to be measured, labelled and 3D scanned before they could be put on display.

Here it is unclear if ‘they’ refers to Horridus or the bones, so you could instead say:

• On arrival in Melbourne the crates were unpacked, and every bone in Horridus’ body had to be measured, labelled and 3D scanned before the specimen could be put on display.

Where meaning is unclear you can avoid pronouns by repeating the name Horridus or alternating descriptors such as ‘the specimen’ or ‘the fossil’ to make your copy clearer.

Example 1

• Horridus is unusual because we have almost a complete skeleton, making them the most complete real dinosaur you can see anywhere in Australia.
• Horridus is unusual because we have almost a complete skeleton, making Horridus the most complete real dinosaur you can see anywhere in Australia.
• Horridus is unusual because we have almost a complete skeleton, making our fossil the most complete real dinosaur you can see anywhere in Australia.

Example 2

• In addition to meeting Horridus you can find out more about the world they lived in.
• In addition to meeting Horridus you can find out more about the world Horridus lived in.
• In addition to meeting Horridus you can find out more about the world the dinosaur lived in.

In summary, when talking specifically about Horridus the fossil you can use:

• Horridus the Triceratops, Horridus, the fossil, the specimen, they/them.

When referring to the animal Triceratops in general it may be correct to use:

• Triceratops, Triceratops horridus, it.
   

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How can I explain the use of gender-neutral pronouns for Horridus?

At times, you may want to explain to readers that the sex of the specimen is unknown. You can simply say:

• Horridus’s sex is unknown.
• We don’t know what sex Horridus is.

Note that the term ‘sex’ refers to a set of physical and biological characteristics. It is different from gender, which refers to social roles and expression of identity.

When we talk about Horridus the Triceratops, we refer only to the specimen’s sex – not gender.

We use gender-neutral language to talk about Horridus, only because we don’t know the animal’s sex and want to be grammatically correct. Avoid suggesting that this is a choice by the fossil, or a matter of gender expression, or that Horridus is non-binary, as this may be insensitive or disrespectful.
 

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Possessive apostrophes

The possessive is formed by adding an apostrophe and an ‘s’. This applies even with a name that ends in ‘s’. For example:

• Horridus’s bones
• Horridus’s journey
   

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When is it OK to use first person?

Most of the time you will write about Horridus in the third person, following these guidelines.

First person may be appropriate when:

• Creating a closed experience inhabited by the character Horridus, for example a social media page, blog entry, comic or book.
• Creating an event or activity framed around the character of Horridus.

Consult the avatar guidelines for writing in the first person – contact Hamish Palmer.

Where the characterisation sits within third person text it should be clearly differentiated, for example:

• A message from Horridus: