Edited By: Oindrila Mukherjee
Last Updated: February 10, 2023, 00:05 IST
Apeflypupa2 has been named Mogambo (L), after the iconic role played by Amrish Puri in the 1987 movie Mr India, and Halyomorpha halys has been named Ramu Kaka, a role played by veteran actor AK Hangal. (Image: News18)
Researchers said the move had a twin purpose. One, to pay tribute to celebrities and, second, to create an interest among research students by making the study of bugs easier for identification
Bollywood’s legendary characters are making their way into the world of bugs and insects. Researchers in Gadag have named two bugs after the famous characters of Mogambo and Ramu Kaka, played by actors Amrish Puri and AK Hangal on screen. This new nomenclature method is trending and students as well as researchers have welcomed the initiative.
While Apeflypupa2 has been named ‘Mogambo’, after the iconic role played by Puri in the 1987 movie ‘Mr India’, Halyomorpha halys has been named ‘Ramu Kaka’, a role played by Hangal in numerous movies.
Researchers said the move had a twin purpose. One, to pay tribute to celebrities and, second, to create an interest among research students by making the study of bugs easier for identification.
Researchers Sangamesh Kadagad and Manjunath Nayak said, “We have been naming the bugs to help junior researchers easily identify them. We first tell them scientific names and then select names of legends. Now, students are easily able to remember the names of the specimens. We have also named some bugs after famous politicians and cricketers based on their looks and morphology, but are yet to finalise them.”
The trend of naming bugs after popular personalities started recently when Catacanthus incarnatus was named ‘Hitler’, as it resembled the German dictator’s face. Similarly, the ‘Mogambo’ bug resembles Puri’s character in ‘Mr India’.
Last week, a new genus of wasps was named ‘Soligas’, which is the indigenous community of Biligiri Rangan Hills (BR Hills) in Chamarajanagar district of Karnataka, in recognition of their contribution to conservation of forests and biodiversity.
On Monday, a new spider, which was spotted after a long time in Gadag town, was named after ‘Bhallala’ of ‘Bahubali’ fame as its body resembles a chariot used by Bhallaladeva in the film.
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