Dr. Michael Darby of the UK’s Natural History Museum has named a newly discovered species of beetle after Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg as a testament to her persistence, the Museum revealed Friday.
“I chose this name as I am immensely impressed with the work of this young campaigner and wanted to acknowledge her outstanding contribution in raising awareness of environmental issues,” Dr. Darby said in a press release.
The tiny beetle, which measures less than 1mm long and has no eyes or wings, was found by Dr. Darby while he was studying in the Natural History Museum’s Spirit Collection, which contains over 22 million animal specimens.
The Natural History Museum, the most visited natural history museum in Europe and the top science attraction in the UK, said that the beetle specimen originated in Nairobi, Kenya. It was collected in samples of soil and leaf litter by Dr. William C. Block in the 1960s. Dr. Block’s collection was later donated to the Museum in 1978.
As of Friday, the official Latin name for the beetle, which belongs to the Ptiliidae family of insects, is Nelloptodes gretae, a rough translation of Greta’s name.
The young climate activist rocketed to fame as a result of her protests outside the Swedish parliament, which in August 2018 when Greta was 15. Soon after she began “striking” from school on Fridays, calling on the government to take stronger action against global warming.
Museum officials suggest that the new Greta beetle is just one of many new species yet to be discovered.
“There are likely hundreds of exciting new species still to be discovered around the world as well as in the vast collections of the Natural History Museum,” said Dr. Max Barclay, the Museum’s Senior Curator in Charge of Coleoptera — or beetles.
“The name of this beetle is particularly poignant since it is likely that undiscovered species are being lost all the time, before scientists have even named them, because of biodiversity loss — so it is appropriate to name one of the newest discoveries after someone who has worked so hard to champion the natural world and protect vulnerable species,” Barclay said.
The scientific description of the beetle has been published Friday in The Entomologist’s Monthly Magazine.
“I am delighted that we have published a species name that acknowledges all that Greta and her supporters have done,” said Andrew Wakeham-Dawson, editor of the magazine.
According to its website, the Natural History Museum receives some five million visitors each year.
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I don’t think I would be very happy to find out that an insect had been named after me or any of my family -seems to me it would be an insult.
She has no record of successful prophecies. She is not a prophet .
She is a mascot.
I can’t put a number on it, but most species that have roamed this old planet went out of business during calamities that turned it into a snowball. Warming hatches new species, like an incubator.
Is this insect a crop pest or is a wood boring bug dose it bite or get into your homes Liberals are so screwed up when they unwind they get dizzy
Good. She is a little stupid brainwashed insect.
Seems appropriate to name a sightless beetle after her since she can’t see reality either. Now if it also ate dung then it would be perfect since she’s being fed a steady diet of bull droppings.
Whats next a new flower or bird maybe a new fish named for her The liberals and the Globalists are using her to advance their goals a total world government under the Useless Nations
For God’s sake what next? She’s not a prophet, she’s a silly little indoctrinated schoolgirl who has been exploited for the scaremongering profiteering of liars, who are scamming the World!
The climate has always changed, without that change we would not have evolved to where we are today! #ClimateCrackpots