Place Object Found: Port Elizabeth

Department: Natural History

In the 19th century, George Busk was the world's foremost expert on bryozoans, a type of marine invertebrate similar to coral. He was asked to describe the new species of bryozoa discovered by the HMS Challenger expedition of the 1870s. He named several of the new species after his friend, Margaret Gatty from Ecclesfield, with whom he regularly corresponded. Sadly, many of these scientific names were never properly described, as Busk died before completing the task and as a result, they are considered Nomen Nudum. This specimen still bears Busk's scientific name 'Adeona gattyae' in our collections, but its true species designation will remain unknown until an expert in bryozoa reidentifies it.