A new species of Venezuelan diving beetle is named in honor of Stephen Colbert

[babylonsister]

Yea, I know. File this under stuff you don't give a crap about. ;)

Colbert namesake for Venezuelan beetle

By Jennifer Harper (Contact) | Friday, May 8, 2009


At an odd nexus of politics and science, there are bugs. Lots of bugs. The same scientists who once named fungus-loving beetles after Bush-era heavyweights are at it again.

This time it's Stephen Colbert's turn. He is related to a South American arthropod. Sort of.

On Thursday, entomologist Quentin Wheeler of Arizona State University and biologist Kelly Miller at the University of New Mexico announced they had named a new species of a Venezuelan diving beetle after the Comedy Central host.

Alas, Mr. Colbert's namesake is no glamour bug. The newly crowned Agaporomorphus colberti is bulbous and brown, with alarming antennae and segmented, spiked legs.

It is not particularly attractive.

"The beetle named for Colbert belongs to a species group ... (A. knischi Zimmerman) based on the common presence of a pair of rows of fine setae on the dorsal surface of the male's reproductive organs," the official proclamation reads.

Setae or not, the waggish scientists sent a handsome framed print of the "Agaporomorphus colberti"to Mr. Colbert just in time for his 45th birthday, along with a card showing the 1-inch beetle scaling a cupcake.

"Last year, Stephen shamelessly asked the science community to name something cooler than a spider to honor him. His top choices were a giant ant or a laser lion. While those would be cool species to discover, our research involves beetles, and they are way cooler than a spider any day," Mr. Wheeler said.

more...

http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2009/may/08/happy-birthday-colbert-heres-your-new-bug/

[Joanne98]

1. HAHAHA!