Taylor Swift has a new honour to add to her music accolades: four newly identified insect species named after her and her albums.
The Australian plant bugs belong to a new genus called Swiftiephylus. Its four species are Swiftiephylus taylorae, honouring Swift herself; Swiftiephylus amator, referencing Lover; Swiftiephylus intrepidus, for Fearless; and Swiftiephylus poetorum, a nod to The Tortured Poets Department, People reports.
The findings were published on September 9 in Insect Systematics and Evolution, in a study describing 12 new insect species.
Behind the tribute is Sarah Schroeder, an entomology doctoral student at the University of California, Riverside, and a lifelong Swift fan. The genus name combines “Swiftie” with “Phylus”, a name used for this group of insects, according to the university’s announcement.
Their colouring helped inspire the choice, too. Schroeder linked the insects’ pale yellow bodies and red markings to the singer’s blonde hair and red lipstick. She believes those colours help conceal the bugs among Australian she-oak flowers.
The insects feed on she-oaks but are not known to harm the plants or be pests to people or animals.
Although newly described, the specimens were collected between 1995 and 2004. Schroeder and her adviser, entomology professor Christiane Weirauch, examined 593 specimens borrowed from the American Museum of Natural History and Australian Museum.
The tribute also has a conservation purpose. Schroeder hopes Swift’s name will draw attention to species that remain scientifically undocumented.
“Taxonomy is the cornerstone of conservation,” she said in the university announcement, explaining that identifying species is essential to protecting them.
Swift has received a similar scientific honour before. In 2022, a millipede was named Nannaria swiftae. Entomologist Derek Hennen said the singer’s music had helped him through graduate school, making the name a gesture of thanks, according to People’s account of celebrity-inspired species names.
Source: Khaleej Times