8-year old Duncan Uszkay and 11-year old Hannah Walsh won the Maple Tree Press contest to Name a New Species.

From over a thousand entries that came in for the Maple Tree Press “Name a New Species” contest, one name was chosen as the favourite by the judges. Surprisingly, the winning name of “Salsolis” was entered twice, separately, by 8-year old Duncan Uszkay and 11-year old Hannah Walsh. To honour this coincidence (surely a testament to the endless ingenuity and intelligence of kids), Maple Tree Press offers the heartiest congratulations to the winners: Duncan Uszkay and Hannah Walsh! The common name for the new species is “Salsolis.”

Background on the contest:
In October 2005, Maple Tree Press announced the exciting Name a New Species Contest in conjunction with the publication of Strange New Species: Astonishing Discoveries of Life on Earth by Elin Kelsey.

The contest ran from November 1st, 2005 to March 31st, 2006 giving children across North America the chance to enter a name for a newly identified species and leave a permanent mark on science.

About the newly discovered species:
The new species to be named was found in the Great Salt Lake in Utah. This microbe is part of a group of organisms called extremophiles, so named because of their ability to survive in extreme environmental conditions that would kill humans in seconds flat. More specifically, this organism is classified as a halophile or salt-loving microorganism because it thrives in water ten times saltier than the sea.

The new species was identified in 2004 by 21 year-old college student Ashlee Allred, part of a team of scientists--led by American biochemist Dr. Bonnie Baxter--who are doing research on life in extreme environments, on Earth and other planets.

Read the press release announcing the new name

About the new name “Salsolis”:
To quote the scientist whose team discovered the new species, and who was also one of the judges, Dr. Bonnie Baxter says:

“The scientists on the judging committee were astounded by the variety and numbers of names submitted. Most of us were particularly drawn to the rationale that children used to choose a name. Some of the children took this very seriously and presented names with Latin roots or named by the discoverer. Others decorated these microbes with creative and imaginative names. Still others gave names of compassion: one after her late father, another after Hurricane Katrina. To all of these kids, thanks for participating and helping us name this very important little part of our natural world!”

Hannah and Duncan both chose the name “salsolis” because sal means salt and solis means sun in Latin, which describes two of the defining characteristics of this newly discovered species of halophile (meaning salt-lover).

Salsolis thrives in water ten times saltier than the sea and contains such an abundance of carotinoid pigments that it is completely resistant to ultraviolet rays. Dr. Baxter hopes that these tiny microbes could lead to breakthroughs in understanding how to prevent UV damage to humans.

Other finalists:
The winners and 10 lucky finalists will receive a copy of Strange New Species signed by the author, Elin Kelsey. The finalists are:
Jeffrey Martin, “Saladuro”
Cameron Coyle, “Salteenies”
Kate Eppler, “Solsaphilia”
Lindsay McKay, “Lawrence”
Cooper Harcott, “Fire Saltan”
Carly Wood, “Allred”
Kris Mutafov, “Sallum”
Jared Edwards, “Sicro”
Maritza Morales, “Variphile”
Jordan Kovacs, “Salty the Basking Carrot”

Congratulations to all the finalists, the winners, the panel of judges and Maple Tree Press.