A couple of years ago, scientists at Cornell named a new species of beetle after President Bush. The fact that it was a slime-mold beetle only heightened the attention. The act was apparently an homage, and Bush even thanked those involved. Around the time, I recall some talk about how animals acquired their names–and a few proposals that perhaps the names of new species should be auctioned off, to raise money for conservation. A perfect marriage of capitalism and the environment! Yesterday, the idea paid off:

MONTE CARLO, Monaco, Sept. 20 — An auction of rights to name 10 newly discovered species of fish raised more than $2 million for conservation efforts in eastern Indonesia on Thursday night, setting a record for an event of its type.