Changes in the species-level taxonomy of African baboons are inconvenient to researchers. Most are however attributable less to the perversity of the taxonomist than to the acquisition of new knowledge. Since biospecies are usually defined as closed genetic systems, new evidence for gene-flow often involves mandatory taxonomic and nomenclatorial revision. In the present state of knowledge, carefully defined vernacular names for baboons are less ambiguous than Linnaean binominals. Investigation of genetic polymorphism provides a powerful tool for explicating the breeding structure of baboons and other primates, and it is suggested that trapping and comprehensive bioassay would usefully complement most observational studies.