Awareness of the importance of biodiversity for mankind is only gradually gaining ground. So it’s no wonder that those who do research are constantly looking for new ways to generate attention. Very popular for a number of years: Newly discovered species and genera or those that need to be categorized are named after the greatest possible superstars. That’s why there is now the horsefly “Scaptia beyonceae”, the beetle “Agra schwarzeneggeri” or the moth “Neopalpa donaldtrumpi” – and many, many more celebrity creatures. Similarities with real people, for example in body shape, way of life or other characteristics are not excluded, but not necessarily mandatory. In any case, celebrity names are going well, which is not least demonstrated by this text.
The Australian spider researchers Volker Framenau and Pedro Castanheira from Murdoch University in Perth cannot be accused of too much sensationalism when naming their discoveries. In the past, they’ve given their wives names to spider species, as well as Australian footballer Johnny Warren – not exactly a world star either. But now: “Abba”.
A spider species has now been named after the Swedish pop band, which the two researchers were able to redefine after 15 years of extensive studies of orb-weaver spiders in Australian and worldwide zoological collections. Although the first specimens of this species have been known since 1912, they have never been scientifically classified correctly. In a study published in the journal Evolutionary systematics was published, Framenau and Castanheira now describe the only three to four millimeter small single species “Abba transversa”, which is currently at home in coastal areas of New South Wales and Queensland. It differs from the other species of the orb-weaver spider family (Araneidae) by two dark spots in the middle of the abdomen and by the thick macrosetae, i.e. bristles, on the first pair of legs of the males.
The choice of name should have nothing to do with the leg hairstyle of an Abba singer. Ever since the natural scientist Carl von Linné, who was also Swedish, invented the rules for taxonomy in the 18th century, explorers have been free to choose their names. It just has to follow the scheme that the genus comes first (upper case) and then the species (lower case). “The band’s songs provided hours of entertainment for the authors,” the researchers justified their choice. The band name Abba is made up of the first names Agnetha (Fältskog), Björn (Ulvaeus), Benny (Andersson) and Anni-Frid (Lyngstad).
“In total, a little more than 4,000 species of spiders have been described in Australia and, according to estimates, between 10,000 and 15,000 species are still unnamed,” explained Volker Framenau about the fuss surrounding the new naming. And it brings us back to what it’s all about: biodiversity – and the task of humans to finally preserve it instead of further decimating it.