There's a new ant species, and it's named after Radiohead

(Image credit: Eric Feferberg/Getty Images)

published 24 April 2017

If success is measured by whether or not you have an obscure animal species named after you, the British rock band Radiohead has officially made it. Following the likes of Bono, who has a spider named after him, and Lady Gaga, who has a family of ferns named after her, Radiohead has inspired the name of a newly discovered species of "fungus-farming ant," Mashable reported.

The ant, found in Venezuela's portion of the Amazon rainforest, has been christened Sericomyrmex radioheadi. And these Radiohead ants aren't your average ants: Part of the genus of "silky ants," the ant species can "grow its own food and is covered with a filamentous layer of white crystals," Live Science reported.

Scientists said they picked the name to honor Radiohead's music and the band's activism work. "[W]e wanted to acknowledge the conservation efforts of the band members, especially in raising climate change awareness," said Ana Ješovnik, the study's lead author.