Ancient sea creature named after Barack Obama

Representative Image

'Obamus Coronatus' is the scientific name given to a newly discovered creature, found in a remarkably well-preserved fossil bed in a southern Australia mountain range.

Former President Barack Obama has a strong liking for science and hence this honour to the mortal where "Coronatus" means "crowned." According to scientists from the University of California-Riverside, the creature spent its entire life embedded on the ocean floor, likely never moving. This tiny, disc-shaped animal is about a 1/2 inch long and has raised spiral grooves on its surface.

In addition to the above, another second small animal, an egg-shaped critter was also discovered. It just looked like a raisin. He was named after Sir David Attenborough, the English naturalist and broadcaster who was known for his science advocacy and support of palaeontology. It was given the name Attenborites Janeae, where Janeae is a nod to Jane Fargher, a co-owner of the property where the fossils were discovered.

The two genera identified are among the most primitive creatures to exist on Earth. Palaeontologist Mary Droser, the lead scientist behind these two new inventions said that “I’ve never seen such a beautifully preserved bed with so many high quality and rare specimens, including Obamus and Attenborites in the past 30 years from time I have been working in this region.”

Droser further added, “We have been seeing evidence for these animals for quite a long time, but it took us a while to verify that they not part of another animal but are animals within their own rights.”

The study appears in the Australian Journal of Earth Sciences. Other authors include Pete Dzaugis and Scott Evans, both from the University of California, Riverside.