Damselfly thought to be 100 MILLION years old named after Sir David Attenborough
TV naturalist Sir David Attenborough was last night said to be delighted after a prehistoric insect was named in his honour.
Damselfly thought to be 100 million years old named after Sir David Attenborough
The 100 million-year-old damselfly was found in Burma perfectly preserved in amber dating from the mid-Cretaceous period.
And it was identified as a new species to science because it had shorter wings than near relatives.
Researchers led by Professor Edmund A. Jarzembowski have formally named the insect as Mesosticta davidattenboroughi as a belated 90th birthday present to the world’s most famous naturalist.
Sir David is said to be delighted after the prehistoric insect was named in his honour
Sir David was delighted
Prof Jarzembowski said: “Dragonflies in amber are extremely rare and the recent discoveries by my Chinese colleagues are a new window on the past.
“It is tradition in taxonomy - the naming of a new species - to contact the person concerned.
“Sir David was delighted because he is not only interested in the story of amber, but also a president of the British Dragonfly Society.”
Lead author Daran Zheng from the Nanjing Institute of Geology and Palaeontology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, commented: “Mesosticta davidattenboroughi is quite unique because we have uncovered a new species.”
David Attenborough has snail named in his honour
The naming of the species was revealed in the Journal of Systematic Palaeontology.
Mesosticta davidattenboroughi is just the latest species to be named after Sir David whose wildlife documentaries have enchanted the world.
Others include a carnivorous plant, a butterfly, a tiny spider, a Peruvian frog and a Namibian lizard.
Among the prehistoric species named after him are a Mesozoic reptile, a fossilised armoured fish and a 430 million-year-old crustacean.