Donald Trump now has a moth namesake after a biologist discovered an insect crowned by yellowish scales that looked just like a head of tousled blond hair. He named it Neopalpa donaldtrumpi.
The moth can be found in parts of California and Baja California, reported CNN, and evolutionary biologist Vazrick Nazari said he hopes the Trump-related name will bring more awareness to the insect's habitat and conservation challenges.
Nazari said he came up with the name because the scales reminded him of Trump's hairstyle, said Phys.org.
"With its hair tufts, its presence in U.S. 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," said Nazari, per CNN.
"I hope to bring some public attention to the importance of conservation of the fragile habitats in the United States that still contain undescribed and threatened species, and generate interest in the importance of alpha-taxonomy in better understanding the neglected micro-fauna component of the North American biodiversity."
Nazari said the discovery of the insect, described as a "micro-moth," in an area as well-studied as southern California was an example of how critical conservation efforts are for threatened species with insecure habitats, per Phys.org.
Details about moth were published Tuesday in the open access journal ZooKeys.
"The monotypic genus Neopalpa was described in 1998 by Czech entomologist Dalibor Povolný based on two male specimens from Santa Catalina Island, California, which he named N. neonata," says the abstract.
"The female of this species was discovered recently based on a DNA barcode match and is described. In addition, a new species with marked differences in morphology and DNA barcodes from southern California and Baja California Mexico is described as Neopalpa donaldtrumpi."
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