♫ These are the big fish / Who always try to eat down the small fish / Just the small fish ♫ Those were the words of Bob Marley in his song ‘Guiltiness’ - but he failed to mention a little blood-sucking crustacean that attacks hosts by surprise and drains them of all bodily fluids.
♫ These are the big fish / Who always try to eat down the small fish / Just the small fish ♫ Those were the words of Bob Marley in his song ‘Guiltiness’ - but he failed to mention a little blood-sucking crustacean that attacks hosts by surprise and drains them of all bodily fluids. Ironically, this very crustacean is named after the legendary reggae musician.
In the Gnathia marleyi’s defence, it only behaves this way in its youth. After reaching maturity, it stops attacking others and ceases to feed altogether, becoming a free-living, benthic organism. First discovered in 2012, Gnathia marleyi was the first new species to be described in the Caribbean in 20 years. Its discoverer, Paul Sikkel, chose the name because of his admiration for Marley’s music, rather than its behaviour.
