Chadron State College professor discovers new beetle species
A Chadron State College professor has quite the honor—a new species of beetle he discovered has been named after him.
By News Channel NebraskaCHADRON, Neb. -- A Chadron State College professor has quite the honor—a new species of beetle he discovered has been named after him.
Biology Professor Matthew Brust noticed the beetles on a trip to the Ferris Dunes in Wyoming, in June 2022.
He was surprised by the beetle’s bee-like wing covers and flight patterns.
Brust’s discovery is of a new member of the bumblebee scarab beetle family, now known as Lichnanthe brusti.
“I was rather pleasantly surprised that this was something new to science,” Burst said in a press release. “To me this is just a thing I do. I go to places that nobody does, and I pay attention. I just want to contribute to my field. That’s what matters most.”
Brust said he began collecting insects in his youth and never outgrew the hobby. His personal trove of tiger beetles numbers nearly 1,000 specimens, and through his work with the U.S. Department of Agriculture, he estimates identifying more than 100,000 grasshoppers.