Laboratoriomus

Laboratoriomus is a term occasionally used in educational and speculative contexts to denote a hypothetical genus of small rodents commonly associated with the laboratory mouse. It is not an officially recognized taxon in modern zoological nomenclature.

Name and etymology: The name combines laboratorium, the Latin word for “laboratory,” with Mus, the traditional Latin genus for mice, producing a pseudo-binomen that suggests a laboratory origin. In practice, it is used as a teaching device rather than as a formal species designation.

Taxonomic status: There is no type specimen, no formal description, and it is not included in recognized taxonomic databases. When it appears in texts, laboratoriomus is presented as a fictional or provisional taxon to illustrate how new taxa are proposed, evaluated, or rejected, rather than as a real organism.

Usage and significance: In educational contexts, laboratoriomus helps illustrate concepts such as genus-level naming, taxonomic priority, and the distinction between model organisms and formally described species. It may also appear in fiction or thought experiments about laboratory animals, bioethics, and the history of science, serving as a neutral reference point rather than a real entity.

See also: Mus musculus, laboratory mouse, model organism, taxonomy, binomial nomenclature, zoological nomenclature.