New ‘Bat Frog’ Species Named After Ozzy Osbourne
A new species of frog has just been discovered in the Brazilian Amazon. Discovered during a month-long expedition, a group of metalhead scientists were able to find an elusive frog which which can produce loud, bat-like sounds. When it came time to give the species an official name, scientists took inspiration from Ozzy Osbourne's infamous bat-biting incident to dub the new species, Dendropsophus ozzyi.
The brutal adventure within the Amazon took place in 2009. During the expedition, an incredible noise echoed through the rainforest, convincing scientists that an undiscovered species was nearby. Pedro Peloso, one of the frog's discoverers and a postdoctoral fellow at Museu Paraense Emílio Goeldi, Brazil, tells National Geographic, "As soon as I heard its call, I knew it was a new species. I had never heard anything like it."
Invigorated by the anomalous sound, the team of scientists rounded up a total of 21 "bat frog" specimens. Along with its brown-and-orange color and long, delicate fingers and toes, "the male frogs also have an unusually large vocal sac, a nearly transparent piece of skin that inflates to produce its unique high-pitched chirping sound. Male tree frogs in general make loud calls to communicate with females in distant treetops, but the new species is the first known to sound like a bat."
The team of scientists brought their collection back to the lab, which sparked conversation about their mutual love for Ozzy Osbourne and Black Sabbath. From these discussions, Pedro Peloso chose to name the new species of frog 'Dendropsophus ozzyi' in honor of metal's Prince of Darkness.
This isn't the first time metalhead scientists have named a new species after a metal hero. In 2012 a new species of tarantula was named in honor of Megadeth's Dave Mustaine, while that same year, a 420 million year old marine worm was dubbed ‘Kingnites diamondi’ for the legendary King Diamond. That same King Diamond scientist also dedicated a separate species of marine worm to Motorhead's Lemmy Kilmister back in 2006.
Check out photos of the new frog species and learn more about its discovery at National Geographic.
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