MEXICO: Earlier this summer undergraduate student joshua oliva, of the university of california, Riverside, found a firefly and brought it to UC-Riverside Entomology Research Museum senior scientist Doug Yanega who identified it as a new species.
Yanega says that it is actually pretty unusual for new species to get identified so quickly. “It’s pretty typical for specimens of new insect species to sit in a collection for a decade or more before an expert comes along who has enough familiarity with that particular type of insect to be able to recognize that it’s something new, but I was able to tell this one was interesting right away, and compared it to reference material in our museum.” He goes on to say, “This is why it is essential for scientists to collect and keep insect specimens.”
Additionally, Yanega says, “While it’s unusual for an undergraduate student to find a new species, this has happened before, and shows nicely how a little careful effort can pay off in a big way.”
Now, Yanega knows what he is talking about; after all, the museum has about four million specimens on file. And this collection has specimens that can date back a hundred years or more.
The new firefly species appears to have a body only about half a centimeter long with a black and orange coloring and, of course, a luminescent tip of its tail.
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