Potterheads got themselves a new memento for J.K. Rowling's hit fantasy series - a Harry Potter crab. A new species of crab was named after two heroic characters in Harry Potter. Harryplax severus was discovered in a rubble on the island of Guam in western Pacific Ocean. Its name is also a tribute to its discoverer who shares a name with the boy who lived.
The Harry Potter crab was discovered from a collection of specimen gathered by Harry Conley, an ex-Marine who became a researcher, from rubbles and deep coral reefs in Guam. During the early 2000's, Dr. Gustav Paulay (University of Florida) handed the specimens to Dr. Peter Ng of National University of Singapore. This led to many discoveries in marine species however, two unusual specimens were not studied much until recently. Almost two decades after Conley's death, experts discovered a crab not only of new species but also of new genus.
The discovery was detailed in a study published on Zookeys on Monday, Jan. 24. It was identified in the family, Christmaplacidae Naruse. However, researchers found characteristics in its cephalothorax, pleon and appendages which are distinct from the only representative genus of the family. Thus, a new genus was named.
Study authors Dr. Jose Christopher E. Mendoza and Dr. Peter Ng chose to name the genus Harryplax as tribute to Conley. Dr. Mendoza, a self-confessed Potterhead revealed the name was also alluded to main protagonist of the fantasy novel. They compared Harry Potter's magical abilities to Conley's skill of finding new species which they described to "have substantially advanced the cause of marine science," cited Science Daily.
Meanwhile, the they chose severus as the crab's species name, courtesy of Professor Severus Snape. Like Snape, whose character was surrounded with mystery until the very end, they said that the species has eluded discover for almost 20 years after its first specimen was collected. The Harry Potter crab measures less than a centimeter in length and width. It has long, slender legs, beady eyes and long antennae.
