Risingbd Online Bangla News Portal

Dhaka     Friday   29 March 2024

New moth species named after Donald Trump

3 || risingbd.com

Published: 16:55, 19 January 2017   Update: 15:18, 26 July 2020
New moth species named after Donald Trump

Risingbd Desk: A miniscule moth with a wingspan of just 0.4 inches is the first species to be named for the soon-to-be president of the United States, Donald Trump.
 
Yellow and white scales topping the moth's head resemble Trump's signature hairstyle, inspiring the name Neopalpa donaldtrumpi, wrote evolutionary biologist Vazrick Nazari, a researcher from Ottowa, Canada, in a new study. The findings were published online on Jan. 17 in the journal ZooKeys.
 
The moth's habitat extends from Southern California in the U.S. through Baja California in Mexico. The wall that the president-elect has proposed building along the border between the two countries could divide that stretch.

Nazari discovered the new species while examining moth specimens from the Bohart Museum of Entomology in California during an investigation of the North American moth family Gelechiidae, also known as twirler moths.

"With its hair tufts, its presence in US and Mexico, and its fragile habitat that needs conservation, I really did not have any choice with this one other than to name [the moth] after Mr. President-elect himself," Nazari said. Nazari said he also chose the name to bring awareness to conservation challenges.

"Having a species named after you is almost always an honor, since your name becomes immortal in the scientific literature," Nazari said. "I am hoping that by appealing to Mr Trump's good nature, the next administration will make an effort to continue protecting the fragile habitats in the US that are home to as of yet unknown species."

Agencies

risingbd/Dhaka/Jan 19, 2017/Nasim

risingbd.com