SINGAPORE, April 20 — A new insect species has been named Campylomma singapura in a tribute to the rich biodiversity still thriving in Singapore.
The plant bug, or mirid, was identified by researchers at the Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum (LKCNHM), part of the National University of Singapore’s (NUS) Faculty of Science, according to a recent research paper published in science journal Zootaxa.
The discovery was made during a plant survey at NUS in August 2023, where mirids were collected from sea hibiscus flowers in the island republic and were also announced in a social media post by LKCNHM on April 7.
“This would not have been possible without Dr Yasunaga’s deep knowledge and experience with mirids from this region,” Hwang Wei Song, senior curator of insecta at LKCNHM, was quoted as saying to The Straits Times in an interview yesterday.
Further samples collected last year confirmed that the specimens, measuring about 2mm, were a previously unidentified species.
Mirids in the Campylomma genus feed on both plants and small insects, such as thrips, and are often valued for their pest-controlling abilities.
Hwang, along with Tomohide Yasunaga, a senior curator of insecta at LKCNHM and Singaporean naturalist Yap Ee Hean, carefully studied 14 specimens to distinguish the new species.
Hwang noted that the sea hibiscus, the mirid’s host plant, is widespread across Singapore, indicating that the bug has a stable and healthy local population.
Naming the bug after Singapore comes at a symbolic time, coinciding with the republic’s 60th birthday and major anniversaries for both LKCNHM and NUS.
“Even for a highly urbanised city, there is still a rich biodiversity living amongst us,” Hwang was quoted as saying, adding that the bug is a deserving candidate for “Singaporean citizenship.”
The team is already planning to explore more under-studied insect groups in the region, which they say is rich in biodiversity but lacking research resources.
