Word comes from the journal New Scientist that the discoverers of three species of slime-mould beetle want to name them after U.S. President George W. Bush, Vice-President Dick Cheney and Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld. Though the International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature is worried that the names might be seized upon by comedians -- safe guess -- the entomologists who identified the bugs insist they are conservatives and intend the designations Agathidium bushi, Agathidium cheneyi and Agathidium rumsfeldi as a compliment. There is a long tradition of honouring people by naming insects after them, including Nelson Mandela (parasitic wasp), Brian Mulroney (dung fly) and The Far Side cartoonist Gary Larson (owl louse).

How fitting.

Word comes from the journal New Scientist that the discoverers of three species of slime-mould beetle want to name them after U.S. President George W. Bush, Vice-President Dick Cheney and Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld. Though the International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature is worried that the names might be seized upon by comedians -- safe guess -- the entomologists who identified the bugs insist they are conservatives and intend the designations Agathidium bushi, Agathidium cheneyi and Agathidium rumsfeldi as a compliment. There is a long tradition of honouring people by naming insects after them, including Nelson Mandela (parasitic wasp), Brian Mulroney (dung fly) and The Far Side cartoonist Gary Larson (owl louse).

How fitting.