| Strigiphilus garylarsoni | |
|---|---|
| |
| Holotype ♂; paratype ♀. | |
Scientific classification 
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| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Psocodea |
| Family: | Philopteridae |
| Genus: | Strigiphilus |
| Species: |
S. garylarsoni
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| Binomial name | |
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Strigiphilus garylarsoni
Clayton, 1990
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Strigiphilus garylarsoni is a species of chewing louse found only on owls. The species has no common name.
The species was first described by biologist Dale H. Clayton in 1990, who named it after cartoonist Gary Larson.
Host
Its type host is the Northern white-faced owl (Ptilopsis leucotis).
Distribution
The type location is Ndola, Zambia.
Etymology
It was named after Gary Larson, creator of the syndicated cartoon The Far Side. In a letter to Larson, Clayton praised the cartoonist for "the enormous contribution that my colleagues and I feel you have made to biology through your cartoons." In his 1989 book The Prehistory of the Far Side, Larson stated, "I considered this an extreme honor. Besides, I knew no one was going to write and ask to name a new species of swan after me. You have to grab these opportunities when they come along." Clayton wrote he honored Larson "in appreciation of the unique light he has shed on the workings of nature."
See also
Further reading
- Heard, Stephen B. (2020). "Gary Larson's Louse". Charles Darwin's Barnacle and David Bowie's Spider: How Scientific Names Celebrate Adventurers, Heroes, and Even a Few Scoundrels. New Haven: Yale University Press. pp. 31–38. doi:10.12987/9780300252699-006. ISBN 9780300252699. S2CID 246138310.
External links
- Potter, Lisa (August 14, 2017). "The Far Side of Science". @theU. The University of Utah. Archived from the original on November 23, 2020.