Nine animals named after rock bands

Given there are many, many bands with animals names, it seems only fitting that there should be a few animals with bands and musicians in their names as well. Here are some of our faves, and a suitably inspired song to go with it:

It takes guts to admit that you're a fan of Canadian prog rockers Rush (they don't measure high on the Richter scale of coolness), but that's exactly where these hairy microbes were found - in termite guts! Sporting long hair-like flagella to help them move around, these cell-sized creatures engage in some rhythmic dancing, similar to the head bobbing (definitely not 'banging') exhibited by anyone listening to Rush's oddly-timed instrumental YYZ.

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This lopsided crustacean has a massive pink claw that is able to stun or kill small fish with just the sound of its snap. Unsurprisingly, it is named after one of the loudest bands in rock, Pink Floyd, with a suitably sonorous song from their 2014 album The Endless Riverto accompany it.

The Rolling Stones might be old but they still rock pretty hard. That said, two extinct trilobite fossils named in 1995 after singer Mick Jagger and guitarist Keith Richards are, quite literally, old hard rock. Speaking of rocks…

Clearly partial to a bit of punk, the pair who described these ancient trilobites in 1997 named them all after the members of the Sex Pistols. Given some of them were discovered in the Arctic Canada while othersin the warmer climate of Australia, perhaps some were looking forHolidays in the Sun.

Not the heaviest of the bands on this list, but given most extinct trilobites like this pair are found embedded in stone, we couldn’t help but be inspired by this number…

Thanks to hisunique vocal chordsQueen frontman Freddie Mercury had an amazing voice – like this tiny isopod that shares his name, he was also from Zanzibar. TheCirolana mercurylives in the sea, so therein lies the tenuous link to this song.

Read more:

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• Nine unexpected effects of music on animals

In Greekthanatosis the word for "death" whileGratusis Latin for grateful, which meansthere is a fly out there literally called the Grateful Dead. It'sprobably looking for some sugar to eat…

Henry Rollins, frontman of Black Flag and the Rollins Band, is a hardcore punk legend, but he’s also an accomplished writer, movie actor and activist - he’s evenvideo game character. But surely nothing can compare to having afirewormnamed after you?

Brazil is home to more terrestrial vertebrates and invertebrates than anywhere else in the world, making it one of the most biodiverse nations out there. Musically they equally as eclectic – about as far removed from samba as you can get, Sepultura are one of the most successful metal bands on the planet. And the creature chosen to honour them – a tube-dwelling surface deposit feeder. We'd be shouting Ratamahatta as well!

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