New Australian Plant Bugs Named After Taylor Swift to Spotlight Insect Diversity

Entomologists at the University of California, Riverside have formally described twelve previously undocumented plant-feeding bugs from Australia, establishing a new genus called Swiftiephylus. Four species—Swiftiephylus taylorae, amator, intrepidus and poetorum—are named after Taylor Swift and themes from her albums, rendered in Latin. These bugs inhabit she-oak trees and shrubs across habitats from tropical forests to coastal dunes, and their pale yellow bodies with red accents resemble Swift’s blonde hair and red lips.

Doctoral student Sarah Schroeder explained that the celebrity-inspired names are intended to draw attention to the vast, understudied insect diversity and the role of taxonomy in conservation. The specimens, gathered from 1995 to 2004 during a joint effort with the American Museum of Natural History, belong to the Miridae family, the world’s largest true-bug group. The insects are not known to be pests to humans or animals.