Scientists name new species of water mite after Jennifer Lopez

Litarachna lopezae was given its name as a 'token of gratitude' for the singer's music, which biologists listened to as they documented their discovery

Jennifer Lopez Tour - Sydney
Litarachna lopezae, a new species of Puerto Rican water mite, has been named after J.Lo. Photograph: Don Arnold/WireImage

A group of scientists have named a water mite after Jennifer Lopez, after locating a new species near Puerto Rico.

Rather than striking a canny resemblance to Lopez, biologists say that the Litarachna lopezae was given its new title as a "small token of gratitude" for the singer's music, which they listened to as they wrote about their findings.

"The reason behind the unusual choice of name for the new species is ... simple: J.Lo's songs and videos kept the team in a continuous good mood when writing the manuscript and watching World Cup soccer 2014," said biologist Vladimir Pesic, who works at the University of Montenegro, according to Associated Press.

The mite was found at a depth of nearly 70m on a coral reef in Mona Passage, a dangerous body of water that separates Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic. According to their study, this is the greatest depth that pontarachnid mite has ever been discovered.

It's not the first time that scientists have honoured newly discovered organisms with the names of musicians: a blood-sucking marine parasite,Gnathia marleyi, honours reggae legend Bob Marley, Queen's Freddie Mercury has a species of isopod that lives on coral reefs off the coast of Zanzibar named Cirolana mercuryi in tribute to him, while Mick Jagger has a type of trilobite named Aegrotocatellus jaggeri named after him. There's even a Joshua Tree spider named Aptostichus bonoi
after U2's Bono.