Taylor Swift Honored by Scientist Who Named New Millipede Species After Her

A scientist has decided to name a newly-discovered species of millipede after none other than Taylor Swift, calling the insect a Nannaria swiftae—a.k.a. a Swift Twisted-Claw Millipede. As reported by Rolling Stone, Virginia Tech scientists Derek Hennen, Jackson Means, and Paul Marek named 16 new species in a paper published by ZooKeys, and Hennen revealed the naming of the Tennessee bug on his Twitter Monday.

“This new millipede species is Nannaria swiftae: I named it after [Taylor Swift],” he shared. “I’m a big fan of her music, so I wanted to show my appreciation by naming this new species from Tennessee after her. A high honor!”

This isn’t the only big honor Swift has coming up, as she also will be receiving an honorary degree from New York University at Yankee Stadium in June, when she’ll also be sharing a speech with graduates. 

“Since 2019, we have been deprived of Commencement’s festive, communal joy, and its absence has been keenly felt,” NYU President Andrew Hamilton shared in a release. “Few groups of graduates are more deserving of a celebration than these classes: their pursuit of their studies disrupted, isolated by a daunting pandemic, these classes — 2022, 2021, and 2020 — have distinguished themselves with their grit, grace, and forbearance. We reconvene at Yankee Stadium with a renewed sense of appreciation for the act of celebrating together in person, a recognition of our graduates’ enormous achievements, and a respect for their character and perseverance.”