The naming of news species is by a process that requires international approval by a recognized professional body or committee. Often famous scientists are named, with the most recognized person of all being the naturalist David Attenborough. The species named in honor of the BBC biologist are:
Attenborosaurus conybeari (a dinosaur);
Blakea attenboroughi (a plant);
Ctenocheloides attenboroughi (a crustacean);
Electrotettix attenboroughi (a grasshopper);
Materpiscis attenboroughi (a fish);
Nepenthes attenboroughii (a plant);
Prethopalpus attenboroughi (a spider);
Sirdavidia (a plant);
Tianchisaurus nedegoapeferima (a dinosaur);
Trigonopterus attenboroughi (a beetle);
Zaglossus attenboroughi (an insect).
As well as the scientific worth, other people to have things named after them include Mick Jagger (a trilobite called Aegrotocatellus jaggeri); Kate Winslet (a spiny anteater called Agra katewinsletae); and Johnny Cash (a spider named Aphonopelma johnnycashi.)
Now comes the turn on a fictional character, the might Chewbacca, the eight foot tall friend of smuggler Han Solo. Here a newly identified weevil has been named after the character.
The weevil is found on an island off the coast of Papua New Guinea. Trigonopterus chewbacca is a black, flightless beetle which is 3 millimeters long. The insect may be small, unlike Chewbacca, but it is hairy, having dense hairlike scales across its head and legs. This apparently inspired researchers to come up with the name.
The weevil has three other related species, not named after Star ward characters. These are T. obsidianus, T. puncticollis and T. silaliensis. There is, however, a moth already named after Yoda and a beetle named after the Dark Lord of the Sith, Darth Vader.
The description of the new species appears in the journal Zookeys. The paper is titled “Four new species of Trigonopterus Fauvel from the island of New Britain (Coleoptera, Curculionidae).”
