Zyzzyva: Difference between revisions
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{{Short description|Genus of beetles}} |
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{{For|the magazine|Zyzzyva (magazine)}} |
{{For|the magazine|Zyzzyva (magazine)}} |
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{{Distinguish|Zyzzyzus}} |
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| image = Zyzzyva sp., lateral view, SG-BCISP-7750.jpg |
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'''''Zyzzyva''''' {{IPAc-en|ˈ|z|ɪ|z|ᵻ|v|ə}} is a [[genus]] of South American [[weevil]]s, often found on or near [[Arecaceae|palm]] trees.<ref name="Andrews 2017">{{cite news |author-last=Andrews |author-first=Travis M. |date=2017-06-27 |newspaper=Washington Post |title=The Oxford English Dictionary has a new last word. Bet you can't pronounce it. |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2017/06/27/the-oxford-english-dictionary-has-a-new-last-word-bet-you-cant-pronounce-it/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170627114132/https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2017/06/27/the-oxford-english-dictionary-has-a-new-last-word-bet-you-cant-pronounce-it/ |url-status=live |archive-date=2017-06-27 |access-date=2021-06-27}}</ref> It was first described in 1922 by [[Thomas Lincoln Casey Jr.]], based on specimens obtained in [[Brazil]] by [[Herbert Huntingdon Smith]].<ref name="Casey 1922"/>{{rp|2,369}} |
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'''''Zyzzyva''''' {{IPAc-en|ˈ|z|ɪ|z|ᵻ|v|ə}} is a [[genus]] of tropical American [[weevil]]s often found in association with [[Arecaceae|palm]]s. It is a snouted beetle. "Zyzzyva" is the last word in many [[English-language]] [[dictionary|dictionaries]].<ref>http://dictionary.reference.com/help/faq/language/w41.html</ref> |
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| ⚫ | Casey describes ''Zyzzyva ochreotecta'' in his book ''Memoirs on the Coleoptera, Volume 10'':<ref name="Casey 1922">{{cite book|title=Memoirs on the Coleoptera|volume= 10 |author-last=Casey |author-first=Thomas L. |author-link=Thomas Lincoln Casey Jr. |url=https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/15912352 |date=1922 |location=Lancaster, PA |publisher=New Era |doi=10.5962/bhl.title.15993 |id={{BHL page|15912352}}}}</ref>{{rp|369–370}} |
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The yellowish weevil is no longer than an ant. It was first discovered in 1922 in [[Brazil]], and named by an Irishman. [[Thomas Lincoln Casey, Jr.]], an entomologist at New York's Museum of Natural History thought that, because there was not a Latin name or Brazilian name associated with this weevil, it was probably named ''Zyzzyva'' as a practical joke to place it in a prominent ending position in many guides and manuals.<ref>{{cite news|newspaper=The Evening Independent|date=Apr 24, 1981|author=Doug Storer|title=Amazing But True}}</ref> |
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| ⚫ | {{blockquote|Rather broadly oblong-oval, convex, densely clothed with scales, ochreous and very uniform above, completely concealing the sculpture; beak (♂) scarcely longer than the prothorax, thick, distinctly arcuate, compressed basally, finely, closely punctate, longitudinally furrowed and carinate above; antennae obscure rufous; prothorax two-fifths wider than long, the sides parallel and nearly straight in basal two-fifths, thence oblique and nearly straight to the apex, which is truncate and much less than half as wide as the base; parallel scales dense and directed longitudinally in great part; elytra a third longer than wide, a fifth or sixth wider than the prothorax and nearly two and one-half times as long, the sides parallel, broadly, circularly rounded in apical third, the sutural angle not reëntrant; pygidium closely but not densely clothed with slender and suberect pale squamules; under surface without sexual mark, the first ventral suture fine but very distinct throughout, the others coarse, the fourth not reflexed at the sides. Length 4.3 mm.; width 2.0 mm. Brazil (Santarem). One specimen.}} |
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== Etymology == |
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''Zyzzyva'' has achieved notoriety for being the last word in several [[English-language]] [[dictionary|dictionaries]].<ref name="Martin 2017">{{cite web |author-first=Katherine Connor |author-last=Martin |date=2017-06-16 |title=New words notes June 2017 |url=https://public.oed.com/blog/june-2017-update-new-words-notes/ |url-status=live |access-date=2021-06-27 |website=Oxford English Dictionary |publisher=Oxford University |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210627082707/https://public.oed.com/blog/june-2017-update-new-words-notes/ |archive-date=2021-06-27}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=What is the absolute last word in any dictionary? |website=Dictionary.com |url=http://dictionary.reference.com/help/faq/language/w41.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140823161235/http://dictionary.reference.com/help/faq/language/w41.html |archive-date=2014-08-23 |access-date=2021-06-27}}</ref><ref name="Storer 1981">{{cite news |title=He Looks Like A Pig, A Bear, Kangaroo... |department=Amazing But True |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=ptFaAAAAIBAJ&sjid=pVkDAAAAIBAJ&pg=5382%2C2577210 |newspaper=The Evening Independent |location=St. Petersburg, FL |date=1981-04-24 |author-last=Storer |author-first=Doug |author-link=Doug Storer |page=6-B |access-date=2021-06-27}}</ref> Casey is commonly credited with naming the genus, although the [[etymology]] of the word is unclear.<ref name="Storer 1981"/><ref name="Martin 2017"/><ref name="Andrews 2017"/> One theory is that the word was inspired by ''Zyzza'', a former genus of [[leafhoppers]].<ref name="Martin 2017"/> An entomologist at New York's Museum of Natural History speculated that Casey made up the word as a joke, "to have the last word."<ref name="Storer 1981"/> |
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== See also == |
== See also == |
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[[Category:Taxa named by Thomas Lincoln Casey Jr.]] |
[[Category:Taxa named by Thomas Lincoln Casey Jr.]] |
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{{Baridinae-stub}} |
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Latest revision as of 16:48, 30 December 2023
| Zyzzyva | |
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Scientific classification 
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| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Coleoptera |
| Family: | Curculionidae |
| Subfamily: | Baridinae |
| Tribe: | Madarini |
| Genus: | Zyzzyva Casey, 1922 |
| Type species | |
| Zyzzyva ochreotecta Casey, 1922
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| Species | |
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Zyzzyva /ˈzɪzɪvə/ is a genus of South American weevils, often found on or near palm trees.[1] It was first described in 1922 by Thomas Lincoln Casey Jr., based on specimens obtained in Brazil by Herbert Huntingdon Smith.[2]: 2, 369
Casey describes Zyzzyva ochreotecta in his book Memoirs on the Coleoptera, Volume 10:[2]: 369–370
Rather broadly oblong-oval, convex, densely clothed with scales, ochreous and very uniform above, completely concealing the sculpture; beak (♂) scarcely longer than the prothorax, thick, distinctly arcuate, compressed basally, finely, closely punctate, longitudinally furrowed and carinate above; antennae obscure rufous; prothorax two-fifths wider than long, the sides parallel and nearly straight in basal two-fifths, thence oblique and nearly straight to the apex, which is truncate and much less than half as wide as the base; parallel scales dense and directed longitudinally in great part; elytra a third longer than wide, a fifth or sixth wider than the prothorax and nearly two and one-half times as long, the sides parallel, broadly, circularly rounded in apical third, the sutural angle not reëntrant; pygidium closely but not densely clothed with slender and suberect pale squamules; under surface without sexual mark, the first ventral suture fine but very distinct throughout, the others coarse, the fourth not reflexed at the sides. Length 4.3 mm.; width 2.0 mm. Brazil (Santarem). One specimen.
Etymology
[edit]Zyzzyva has achieved notoriety for being the last word in several English-language dictionaries.[3][4][5] Casey is commonly credited with naming the genus, although the etymology of the word is unclear.[5][3][1] One theory is that the word was inspired by Zyzza, a former genus of leafhoppers.[3] An entomologist at New York's Museum of Natural History speculated that Casey made up the word as a joke, "to have the last word."[5]
See also
[edit]- Aaaaba
- Aaadonta
- Zyzzogeton, a leafhopper, another "last entry"
- Zyzzyxdonta alata
- Zyzzyzus
- Zzyzx (disambiguation)
References
[edit]
Look up zyzzyva in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.
- ^ a b Andrews, Travis M. (2017-06-27). "The Oxford English Dictionary has a new last word. Bet you can't pronounce it". Washington Post. Archived from the original on 2017-06-27. Retrieved 2021-06-27.
- ^ a b Casey, Thomas L. (1922). Memoirs on the Coleoptera. Vol. 10. Lancaster, PA: New Era. doi:10.5962/bhl.title.15993. BHL page 15912352.
- ^ a b c Martin, Katherine Connor (2017-06-16). "New words notes June 2017". Oxford English Dictionary. Oxford University. Archived from the original on 2021-06-27. Retrieved 2021-06-27.
- ^ "What is the absolute last word in any dictionary?". Dictionary.com. Archived from the original on 2014-08-23. Retrieved 2021-06-27.
- ^ a b c Storer, Doug (1981-04-24). "He Looks Like A Pig, A Bear, Kangaroo..." Amazing But True. The Evening Independent. St. Petersburg, FL. p. 6-B. Retrieved 2021-06-27.