Sissy that bug: RuPaul now has a fly named after him
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There's a new fly (fly, fly, fly, uh oh, uh oh) in town: Please welcome to the stage, Miss "Opaluma RuPaul!"
An Australian scientist has named a new fly species after the Emmy-winning RuPaul's Drag Race host, thanks to the rainbow-hued insects "charisma and uniqueness" among the bug community.
Dr. Bryan Lessard of Australia's National Research Collections gave the colorful fly its title to raise awareness about the insect world in the region, especially after the devastating toll taken by the Black Summer bushfires — particularly in Queensland's Lamington National Park, where this endangered species dwells — between 2019 and 2020.
Mama Ru tweeted about the news Wednesday, highlighting an interview in which Lessard said the fly had "a costume of shiny metallic rainbow colors" and "legs for days," just like its namesake drag superstar.
World of Wonder; CSIRO RuPaul now has a fly, the 'Opaluma RuPaul,' named after him.
"I'd been watching a lot of RuPaul's Drag Race when I was examining the specimen under the microscope, so it was on my mind!" Lessard told CNN. "And I really wanted to give this group of flies a memorable name because it needs the attention — the first specimen of this RuPaul fly was collected over a hundred years ago and sat neglected in a museum collection until someone with the knowledge of that group came along to name and document them."
The Opaluma RuPaul isn't the first Drag Race-insect crossover, however; many queens from the long-running reality competition have worn bug-inspired outfits on the runway. Recent All Stars 6 competitor Silky Nutmeg Ganache debuted a fly-inspired look back on season 11, BenDeLaCreme once werked the main stage dressed as a beetle, and Alaska famously wore a cockroach-patterned dress for the All Stars 2 reunion episode.
In addition to the RuPaul tribute, Lessard also named three rare beetles after a trio of hard-to-find characters from the Pokémon franchise: Binburrum Articuno, Binburrum Zapdos, and Binburrum Moltres.
Subscribe to EW's BINGE podcast for full recaps of RuPaul's Drag Race, including our new season diving into all five All Stars seasons, featuring exclusive interviews with Jujubee, Alexis Mateo, Shea Couleé, Alaska, Detox, BenDeLaCreme, Kennedy Davenport, and more. And be sure to catch up on our BINGE recaps of RuPaul's Drag Race seasons 1-13 with Symone, Jaida Essence Hall, Trixie Mattel, Katya, Peppermint, Bianca Del Rio, Bob the Drag Queen, Sasha Velour, and more!
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