New species of snake discovered in the Himalayas, named after Leonardo DiCaprio.
A team of researchers in the western Himalayas have discovered a new snake species named after Leonardo DiCaprio, Hollywood actor and producer, in recognition of his conservation efforts.
The new species, named ‘Anguiculus dicaprioi’ or DiCaprio’s Himalayan snake, was discovered by a team of researchers from India, Germany, and the United Kingdom in 2020 while they were exploring lesser-known species of snakes as part of a project on reptiles of India.
Their discovery and study of the new species was published October 21, 2024 in a peer-reviewed journal called Scientific Reports.
The researchers classified the new species under a new genus called ‘Anguiculus,’ which means ‘little snake’ in Latin.
The specific epithet “dicaprioi” is a patronymic in honor of Leonardo DiCaprio, an American actor, filmmaker, and environmentalist.
He has been actively involved in creating awareness about global climate change, increasing biodiversity loss, and human health issues through pollution.
