Taylor Swift, the millipede: Scientists name a new species after the
singer
Date:
April 18, 2022
Source:
Pensoft Publishers
Summary:
Taylor Swift, an American singer known for her musical talents,
has earned a new accolade. She now has a new species of millipede
named after her. The new species of twisted-claw millipede was
discovered in the mountains of Tennessee. Scientists described a
total of 17 new species from the Appalachian Mountains.
FULL STORY ========================================================================== Taylor Swift, U.S. singer-songwriter known for hits such as "Shake It
Off" and "You Belong With Me," has earned a new accolade -- she now has
a new species of millipede named in her honor.
==========================================================================
The twisted-claw millipede Nannaria swiftae joins 16 other new species described from the Appalachian Mountains of the United States. These
little- known invertebrates have a valuable role as decomposers: breaking
down leaf litter, they release their nutrients into the ecosystem. They
live on the forest floor, where they feed on decaying leaves and other
plant matter, and in fact, they are somewhat tricky to catch, because
they tend to remain buried in the soil, sometimes staying completely
beneath the surface.
Scientists Derek Hennen, Jackson Means, and Paul Marek, at Virginia
Tech, U.S., describe the new species in a research paper published in
the open access journal ZooKeys. The research was funded by a National
Science Foundation Advancing Revisionary Taxonomy and Systematics grant
(DEB# 1655635).
Because of their presence in museum collections, scientists long suspected
that the twisted-claw millipedes included many new species, but these
specimens went undescribed for decades. To fix this, the researchers
began a multi-year project to collect new specimens throughout the
eastern U.S. They traveled to 17 US states, checking under leaf litter,
rocks, and logs to find species so that they could sequence their DNA
and scientifically describe them.
Looking at over 1800 specimens collected on their field study or taken
from university and museum collections, the authors described 17 new
species, including Nannaria marianae, which was named after Hennen's
wife. They discovered that the millipedes prefer to live in forested
habitats near streams and are often found buried under the soil,
exhibiting more cryptic behaviors than relatives.
The newly-described millipedes range between 18 and 38 mm long, have
shiny caramel-brown to black bodies with white, red, or orange spots,
and have white legs. The males have small, twisted and flattened claws
on their anterior legs, which is the basis for their common name.
The lead author of the study, Derek Hennen, is a fan of Taylor Swift.
"Her music helped me get through the highs and lows of graduate school,
so naming a new millipede species after her is my way of saying thanks,"
he says.
========================================================================== Story Source: Materials provided by Pensoft_Publishers. The original
text of this story is licensed under a Creative_Commons_License. Note:
Content may be edited for style and length.
========================================================================== Journal Reference:
1. Derek A. Hennen, Jackson C. Means, Paul E. Marek. A
revision of
the wilsoni species group in the millipede genus Nannaria
Chamberlin, 1918 (Diplopoda, Polydesmida, Xystodesmidae). ZooKeys,
2022; 1096: 17 DOI: 10.3897/zookeys.1096.73485 ==========================================================================
Link to news story:
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/04/220418093957.htm
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