A Hawaiian fish was named after President Barack Obama. The new species was named in honor of Obama. Apparently, the coral-reef fish is not the first species which is named after Obama. There are also other species, like a speckled freshwater fish, an extinct lizard, a trapdoor spider and a parasitic hairworm, which now have the name of the US President Obama.
- A new species of fish was named in honor of President Obama.
- Scientists have decided this due to Obama’s effort to protect a lot of marine species.
- Obama has received a photo of this coral-reef fish.
This new species was revealed in Hawaii, in the marine protected location. The scientific name of the pink-and-yellow fish is Tosanoides obama. What is more, Barack Obama has several other different species which bear his name. This new species was unveiled in June 016, during an expedition carried out by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to Papahanaumokukea Marine Monument located in the Hawaiian Islands.
On August 2016, Brian Schatz, the Hawaii Democrat Senator together with several marine scientists and conservationists encouraged Obama to expand the Papahanamokuakea Marine National Monument. At about 582,578 square miles, there is the most massive permanent protected marine area on Terra.
Richard Pyle, the lead author of the study and also a scientist at Bishop Museum, has argued that they have decided to name this Hawaiian fish after Obama to prove their gratitude for his efforts to preserve and protect the natural habitat. The Papahanaumokuakea’s expansion adds more protection to one of the last massive wilderness locations on Terra.
Male fish which are part of this newly unveiled species are distinct from females due to a different spot present on their dorsal fin, near the tail. This spot is blue and red with yellow stripes in its center. Pyle claimed that this spot looks similar to the logo of Obama’s campaign, displaying the same colors. Thus, it seemed appropriate for scientists to name this fish after President Obama.
Obamas were first revealed and gathered at approximately 1200 miles northwest of Honolulu, at Kure Atoll, during a dive to nearly three hundred feet in depth. The species is unusual because is the only coral-reef fish which is widespread in the Monument.
Back on September 1st, Sylvia Earle, who is a deep ocean explorer, conservationist, and legendary scientist, during her journey to Midway Atoll within the Monument, she decided to present Barack Obama a photograph of the new species which was discovered. The new research was published in ZooKeys magazine.
Image source: pixabay
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