Two new ant species were named after "Game of Thrones" dragons Viserion and Drogon. (Photo : Twitter/ChooseBristolUG)
Biologists have officially labelled two newfound species of ants after Drogon and Viserion, which are two of Daenerys Targaryen's pet dragons in "Game of Thrones". Their scientific names are Pheidole viserion and Pheidole drogon.
The popularity of the HBO-hit "Game of Thrones" has gone as far as to influencing scientist's decisions when it comes to the taxonomy of specimen. The new species are under the Pheidole genus, and their group, which is called the Pheidole cervicornis group, contains the most extraordinary forms of specimen belonging to the family, according to a report scientists filed in PLOS One.
Their anatomy consists of having a large head and two huge spikes protruding from their backs, according to a description in an article from Popular Science. Their genus is found all over the world.
The researchers appear to be huge fans of "Game of Thrones" considering the fact that the spikes in the backs of these newly discovered species bear a striking resemblance to the dragons of the show, and have accordingly decided to name them after the fictional creatures.
Rhaegal, which is Targaryen's other pet dragon, was not lucky to make the cut, but would have definitely been included had the researchers discovered three new species instead. In the future, they might just decide to do so.
These ants were scanned with a highly specialized CT scanner, which is the same as the ones used in hospitals, except more capable of scanning smaller objects. The technology is relatively new, considering that this has only been used a couple of times, and inspection of these ants is certainly one of the scanner's first uses.
These ants are, by nature, imposing: their spikes are their main defensive mechanism, and researchers speculate that they may also be present as support for their large heads. Fans also made jokes at their expense that a microscopic Targaryen exists, who holds on to these spikes when she goes into the battlefield.
Scientists hope to utilize the CT scanner for further discoveries of unidentified species as microscopic as these dragon-looking ants. And for "Game of Thrones" fans, there might just be an entire subset of species named after the TV series' magical creatures. The video below provides a cool animation for the ants.
