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The Night King reigns supreme in winter and wears a crown of spines, but you won’t find him in Westeros. The CSIRO has named a bee fly after the malevolent monarch from Game of Thrones, one of 230 new species named by the organisation in the past year. Canberra-based CSIRO entomologist Dr Bryan Lessard, known as “Bry the Fly Guy”, said PHD student Xuankun Li named the bee fly Paramonovius nightking because he was a huge fan of the show. “As long as it’s not offensive, derogatory, or your own name, inspiration for new species names can come from anywhere,” Dr Lessard said. Only a quarter of life on earth is currently named and it would take 350 to 500 years to name the rest, he said. But with new technology such as AI, DNA sequencing and big data analytics being utilised by CSIRO, Dr Lessard believes all species could be named in just a few years. “If new species aren’t named, they become invisible to science, which means we could lose precious biodiversity,” he said. “Biodiversity runs the planet. It cycles nutrients, sequesters carbon, pollinates crops and cleans the air we breathe and the water we drink. We literally couldn’t live without it.” Fifteen new species of dung beetles earnt the monikers of researchers at the CSIRO, who “loved this” because the creatures are fantastic nutrient recyclers. This cheeky taxonomic trend follows on from the US, where a caterpillar was recently named after Donald Trump because its head scales resembled his characteristic hairdo. Other species named by CSIRO included the trumpet vine from the rainforests of Queensland, where researchers consulted with the local Eastern Kaku Yalanji Traditional Owners to come up with a suitable name. A new species of cusk eel was also named after CSIRO Fish Collection Manager Alastair Graham, and a tiny soldier fly was named in honour of an insect technician. Dr Lessard hopes more young people will be enticed into taxonomy by the potential to name a new species after anything they want.
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The Night King reigns supreme in winter and wears a crown of spines, but you won’t find him in Westeros.
The CSIRO has named a bee fly after the malevolent monarch from Game of Thrones, one of 230 new species named by the organisation in the past year.
Paramonovious nightking is one of 230 new species named by the CSIRO. Picture: Supplied
Canberra-based CSIRO entomologist Dr Bryan Lessard, known as “Bry the Fly Guy”, said PHD student Xuankun Li named the bee fly Paramonovius nightking because he was a huge fan of the show.
“As long as it’s not offensive, derogatory, or your own name, inspiration for new species names can come from anywhere,” Dr Lessard said.
Only a quarter of life on earth is currently named and it would take 350 to 500 years to name the rest, he said.
But with new technology such as AI, DNA sequencing and big data analytics being utilised by CSIRO, Dr Lessard believes all species could be named in just a few years.
“If new species aren’t named, they become invisible to science, which means we could lose precious biodiversity,” he said.
“Biodiversity runs the planet. It cycles nutrients, sequesters carbon, pollinates crops and cleans the air we breathe and the water we drink. We literally couldn’t live without it.”
Fifteen new species of dung beetles earnt the monikers of researchers at the CSIRO, who “loved this” because the creatures are fantastic nutrient recyclers.
This cheeky taxonomic trend follows on from the US, where a caterpillar was recently named after Donald Trump because its head scales resembled his characteristic hairdo.
Other species named by CSIRO included the trumpet vine from the rainforests of Queensland, where researchers consulted with the local Eastern Kaku Yalanji Traditional Owners to come up with a suitable name.
A new species of cusk eel was also named after CSIRO Fish Collection Manager Alastair Graham, and a tiny soldier fly was named in honour of an insect technician.
Dr Lessard hopes more young people will be enticed into taxonomy by the potential to name a new species after anything they want.
