Last week, among the pomp, Donald J. Trump became the 45th President of the United States of America. Amid the congratulations from world leaders, and behind the deafening shouts of protestors, a stranger honor was bestowed upon the Mr. Trump. This was the naming of a new species of moth.
The moth was identified, according to The Independent, by evolutionary biologist Dr. Vazrick Nazari. In naming the insect after the president, the biologist had the aim of bringing conservation efforts designed to preserve moths to wider public attention.
Dr. Nazari found the species after reviewing a collection of specimens housed in the University of California, Davis. After some tests and following conversations with colleagues, Dr. Nazari was confident he had discovered a new species. This is the second recorded species of a genus of twirler moths.
The new species has been named Neopalpa donaldtrumpi. As to the reason for the naming there is one slightly amusing feature. The adult month has yellowish-white scales present on the head, which bears an approximate resemblance to the hair of the President. The body of the moth is between 7 and and 11 millimeters in length and the spread of its forewings is between 6 and 9.2 millimeters.
Donald Trump:
The newly identified moth:
Another feature of the moth, which distinguishes it from other species of the genus Neopalpa , is the structure of both male and female genitalia, particularly the smaller male genitalia of N. donaldtrumpi.
The moth is likely, along with many other urban moths, to be a threatened species. With this Dr. Nazari said: “By naming this species after the 45th President of the United States, I hope to bring some public attention to, and interest in, the importance of alpha-taxonomy in better understanding the neglected micro-fauna component of the North American biodiversity.”
Donald Trump is not the first U.S. president to have a species named after him. His predecessor, Barack Obama had a species of basslet (a type of fish found in coral reefs) named after him. Appropriately the basslet is native to the waters off Hawaii.
The description of the new species has been published in the journal Zookeys. The paper is called “Review of Neopalpa Povolný, 1998 with description of a new species from California and Baja California, Mexico (Lepidoptera, Gelechiidae).”