The CSIRO Casually Decided To Name A Shiny Fly After RuPaul

RuPaul‘s legacy will forever live on after the CSIRO named a soldier fly after him. The newly classified Opaluma rupaul is known for its iridescent colours and thorny bellies — which feels like a backhanded compliment RuPaul would appreciate. 

“Soldier flies are valuable in the ecosystem,” the National Research Collections Australia’s Dr Bryan Lessard said about the announcement. “The larvae recycle nutrients from dead plants and animals, while adults are pollinators of some Australian plants”.

“Many of the 13 new soldier flies I named are from areas impacted by the Black Summer bushfires,” he said, hoping that the fabulous name drop will help roll in attention during bushfire recovery efforts.

Alongside Drag Race‘s iconic host, three beetles were named after the Pokémon Articuno, Zapdos, and Moltres, and a weevil got a new title “after the fictional insectoid Digimon in the Japanese anime television series Digimon Adventure, who possesses the power of drilling and manipulating the earth” — a reference pivot that feels more up the alley of scientist interests.

RuPaul has not yet commented on his new honour, but surely it’s only a matter of time before the opal thorn soldier fly doppleganger is recreated into a look on the show, perhaps judged by the national science body itself. Aussie contender Etcetera Etcetera from Drag Race Down Under donned an iconic cockroach look on the 2021 series which has just been renewed for a second season.

You can read more about the glittering RuPaul fly over here.