A Caribbean fish known as the French Grunt is infested with gnathiids (Photo: Elizabeth Brill/National Science Foundation)

A Small blood-sucking parasite which feeds on fish in the Caribbean has been named after Bob Marley, in what the biologist who discovered it deems a tribute to the late reggae icon.

The tiny shellfish, a blood feeder that inhabits the coral reefs of the shallow eastern Caribbean, has been called Gnathia marleyi after the Jamaican music legend.

“I named this species, which is truly a natural wonder, after Marley because of my respect and admiration for Marley’s music,” said Dr. Paul Sikkel, a field marine biologist at Arkansas State University.

“Plus, this species is as uniquely Caribbean as was Marley,” he added, quoted on the website of the National Science Foundation.

The juvenile Gnathia marleyi conceals itself inside coral rubble, sea sponge or algae, and launches surprise attacks on fish which it then infests. It is the first new species to be found in the Caribbean in more than two decades.

Naming new species after celebrities is nothing new though; President Barack Obama has a lichen named after him; Microsoft boss Bill Gates has a flower fly, and of course, not to forget Elvis Presley, who has a wasp.

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