Nelloptodes gretae

Nelloptodes gretae is a species of beetle in the family Ptiliidae. It was described in October 2019 and named after the environmental activist Greta Thunberg.[1] Its long antennae bear a passing resemblance to her braided pigtails.[2][3]

Nelloptodes gretae
Scientific classification
Kingdom:
Animalia
Phylum:
Arthropoda
Class:
Insecta
Order:
Coleoptera
Family:
Ptiliidae
Subfamily:
Ptiliinae
Genus:
Nelloptodes

Darby, 2019
Species:
Nelloptodes gretae
Binomial name
N. gretae
Darby, 2019

Description

The beetle is pale yellow and gold, and measures 0.79 millimetres long. It has no eyes or wings, and is distinguishable by a small pit found between where the eyes should go. Usually found in the leaf litter and soil, they feed on fungal hyphae and spores.[3]

Distribution

The newly described species was described from material originally collected in Kenya sometime between 1964 and 1965 by entomologist William C. Brock, who took samples of soil from around East Africa which were stored in the Museum's collections. This species is one of nine within the newly erected genus Nelloptodes from these samples.[4]

See also

References
  1. "Museum scientists described 412 new species this year". www.nhm.ac.uk. Retrieved 31 December 2019.
  2. "Greta Thunberg: New beetle named after climate activist". BBC News. 25 October 2019.
  3. Darby, Michael (2019). "Studies of Ptiliidae (Coleoptera) in the spirit collection of the Natural History Museum, London, 6: New species and records collected by W.C. Block in Kenya and Uganda, 1964–1965". Entomologist's Monthly Magazine. 155 (4): 239-257. doi:10.31184/M00138908.1554.3999.
  4. "New species named after climate activist Greta Thunberg". Natural History Museum. 25 October 2019. Retrieved 26 October 2019.


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