Researchers at the Senckenberg Ocean Species Alliance asked Ze Frank’s 4.25 million followers to help name a newly discovered marine chiton and received over 8,000 suggestions. The species is a wood-eating chiton with an iron-reinforced radula, overlapping plates, and posterior worms that feed on its waste. Runner-up name ideas ranged from pop-culture references to descriptive scientific names. The team ultimately named the species Ferreiraella populi — “of the people.”
Scientists Let 4.25M YouTube Followers Name a New Deep‑Sea Chiton — They Chose Ferreiraella populi
Lead image: © Senckenberg Ocean Species Alliance(Habitus of the newly found deep-sea chiton Ferreiraella populi. Credit: © Senckenberg Ocean Species Alliance.)
Researchers from the Senckenberg Ocean Species Alliance (SOSA) invited the 4.25 million followers of veteran science YouTuber Ze Frank to submit names for a newly discovered marine chiton — and received more than 8,000 suggestions. After reviewing the crowd-sourced entries, the team selected Ferreiraella populi, a name that literally means “of the people.”
What Kind Of Creature Is This?
The organism is a marine chiton, a type of mollusk that looks like a cross between a snail and a beetle. This species feeds exclusively on sunken wood and has several notable features: an iron-reinforced radula for scraping food, a series of overlapping plates along its back, and a broad, fleshy foot that helps it cling to substrates.
Unusual Ecology
Like other members of the genus Ferreiraella, this chiton hosts small worms at its posterior that consume its waste — a quirky ecological detail that inspired many name suggestions and captured the imagination of participants.
The Crowdsource Process
SOSA co-chair Julia Sigwart said the team was "overwhelmed by the response and the massive number of creative name suggestions." More than 8,000 entries arrived from Ze Frank’s audience, offering a wide mix of playful, scientific, and pop-culture inspired names.
Notable runner-up suggestions included Ferreiraella ohmu, a nod to the giant forest spirits in Studio Ghibli films, and Ferreiraella stellacadens — literally “shooting star chiton” — inspired by the tiny hole patterns on the mollusk’s back.
“The name we chose, Ferreiraella populi, translates to ‘of the people,’” Sigwart said, highlighting the collaborative spirit behind the selection.
Why This Matters
Beyond the fun of a naming campaign, the project illustrates how public engagement can support scientific outreach and taxonomic work, especially in underexplored deep-sea environments. Crowdsourcing names can raise awareness about biodiversity, the importance of taxonomy, and the surprising life forms that inhabit the ocean’s depths.
Ze Frank announced the winning entry on his channel, underscoring the collaborative nature of the effort and the reach of science communication across social platforms.
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