Armbruster discovers catfish
species, names it for
Star Wars character
Jonathan Armbruster, biological sciences professor
and curator of fishes for the Auburn University
Museum of Natural History, has named a
previously unknown species of catfish in honor of
the enigmatic Star Wars fan favorite, Greedo.
Armbruster has described more than 40
species of fishes, including a minnow found
in the Auburn area. Although this is his
first species to name after a character, he has
honored friends and colleagues in the past.
The suckermouth armored catfish, Peckoltia greedoi,
was found in 1998 by researchers along the Gurupi
River in Brazil and is known physically for its large,
dark eyes, sucker mouth and protruding bristles.
Armbruster obtained the specimens in 2005 for
a manuscript he was preparing on the genus. Ten
years later, he, along with David Werneke, Milton,
Tan, and Chris Hamilton, all of the Department of
Biological Sciences, was examining the specimen
for characteristics when the connection was made.
“Chris looked at the specimen and said ‘that looks
like that guy from Star Wars,’” said Armbruster.”
After a little prodding, I realized he was talking
about Greedo. We then knew what the name had
to be. The Peckoltia greedoi does bear a striking
resemblance to Greedo.”
Greedo, a bounty hunter from the spaceport Mos
Espa, was killed by Han Solo in a brief scene from
Star Wars: Episode IV A New Hope.
“As a 7-year-old kid, I watched
Star Wars in the theatre and it
was a life-changing experience
for me,” said Armbruster. “I
became a lifelong fan, and I
now share that with my son.
Greedo has always been a
personal favorite of mine.”
“I have named a few species after colleagues
like Peckoltia lujani for my former student,
Nathan Lujan, Hypostomus pagei for my
advisor, Lawrence Page, and Peckoltia sabaji
for a close friend and colleague, Mark Sabaj
Pérez,” said Armbruster. “I’ve also had former
students name species for me.”
As a taxonomist, Armbruster looks at the
systematics of fishes, or the naming of species
and higher groups, and sees how they are
related to one another.
Aside from the Peckoltia greedoi, Armbruster
also described the P. ephippiata and P. lujani
specimens collected in Brazil and Venezuela
through his National Science Foundation All
Catfish Species Inventory (ACSI) grant.
“In biology, taxonomy is probably the most
important science,” said Armbruster. “We
have not even completed cataloging all of the
species found locally, and in places like South
America, it sometimes feels like we have barely
started. We need names to be able to discuss
anything about the biology of the organisms,
and it is the one branch of biology used by
every biologist alive.”
College of Sciences and Mathematics
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