Science – Researchers name fossil feather star after Zelensky – Wikipedia

Katowice (AFP) – Polish researchers have named the star fossil feathers after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. The fossilized animal was discovered in Ethiopia and has been almost completely preserved, reports the team led by researcher Marius Salamon of the University of Katowice (German: Katowitz).

Scientists named the discovered species Ausichicrinites zelenskyyi. Feathered stars that live in the sea are very rich in species and, like starfish, belong to echinoderms. With the label, the researchers wanted to honor Zelensky “for his courage and bravery in the defense of a free Ukraine.”

The specimen found now is about 150 million years old, the scientists wrote in the “Royal Society Open Science” journal. It has ten arms and claw-like extensions. It is the first discovery of a fossil feather star from the Jurassic geological period on the African continent. Several hundred types of crinoids are known to researchers.

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