New insect species has been named after great Kazakh scientist Shoqan Valikhanov

In the review article on Phragmataecia genus of Cossidae family, which has been published in prestigious New Zealand journal Zootaxa indexed in Scopus and Web of Science, the description of a new species that had been named Phragmataecia valikhanovi was presented.

Author of the article Doctor of Biology Roman V. Yakovlev commented on his decision to choose such name:

“When I discovered the new species on the territory of South Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan, the idea came to my mind at once. I’ve learned the name of the great Kazakh polymath Shoqan Valikhanov. He passed away early, but he managed to do a lot within 30 years of his life. This person was famous for his unique memory, polyhistory of his knowledge, he was a polyglot. He originated from Genghisids, although he received brilliant European education and became known in ethnography and history. He collected herbaria, ornithological and entomological collections. I believe, it is my duty to honour memory of Kazakh scientist in such way.”

According to the codes of biological and zoological nomenclature, the names, which are given to biological species, remain forever.