''Agathidium'' is a genus of beetles in the family ''
Leiodidae''.
''A. bushi'', ''A. cheneyi'' and ''A. rumsfeldi'' are species of this genus named after
George W. Bush
George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Republican Party, Bush family, and son of the 41st president George H. W. Bush, he ...
,
Dick Cheney and
Donald Rumsfeld, respectively, by two former
Cornell
Cornell University is a private statutory land-grant research university based in Ithaca, New York. It is a member of the Ivy League. Founded in 1865 by Ezra Cornell and Andrew Dickson White, Cornell was founded with the intention to teach a ...
entomologists, Kelly B. Miller (now at the
University of New Mexico
The University of New Mexico (UNM; es, Universidad de Nuevo México) is a public research university in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Founded in 1889, it is the state's flagship academic institution and the largest by enrollment, with over 25,400 ...
) and
Quentin D. Wheeler. According to Miller and Wheeler, the naming of the beetles (which were three of 65 species to be named) was done in homage to the political figures.
The same authors named ''A. vaderi'' after the fictional
Darth Vader
Darth Vader is a fictional character in the ''Star Wars'' franchise. The character is the central antagonist of the original trilogy and, as Anakin Skywalker, is one of the main protagonists in the prequel trilogy. ''Star Wars'' creator George ...
.
Some species can roll themselves up into an almost complete sphere, similar to
pillbug
Armadillidiidae is a family of woodlice, a terrestrial crustacean group in the order Isopoda. Unlike members of some other woodlice families, members of this family can roll into a ball, an ability they share with the outwardly similar but unre ...
s. Some males have horns on their left
mandible
In anatomy, the mandible, lower jaw or jawbone is the largest, strongest and lowest bone in the human facial skeleton. It forms the lower jaw and holds the lower teeth in place. The mandible sits beneath the maxilla. It is the only movable bone ...
s to dislodge rival males.
[Atlantic Canada Coleoptera]
''Agathidium'' Panzer 1797 and ''Gelae'' Miller and Wheeler 2004
(with pictures)
Species
References
External links
from Cornell News
{{Taxonbar, from=Q139709
Leiodidae
Staphyliniformia genera
Articles containing video clips
