What Do Johnny Depp and a 505-Million-Year-Old Fossil Have in Common?

Scientist discovers ancient creature, which he names after actor because of it's scissor-like claws, similar to the character Edward Scissorhands

By Bruna Nessif May 19, 2013 9:58 PMTags
Johnny Depp, Fossil, Kooteninchela deppi20th Century Fox, National News

Johnny Depp has found his long lost twin...well, kinda.

A scientist discovered a unique, half-billion-year-old fossil and named it Kooteninchela deppi after the actor, because of its scissor-like claws, which reminded the researcher of Depp's famous 1990 character, Edward Scissorhands.

"When I first saw the pair of isolated claws in the fossil records of this species, I could not help but think of Edward Scissorhands," David Legg said on the website of London's Imperial College

"Even the genus name, Kootenichela, includes the reference to this film, as 'chela' is Latin for claws or scissors."

But that's not the only reason Legg chose that specific name for the 505-million-year-old fossil, "In truth, I am also a bit of a Depp fan," he admits, "and so what better way to honor the man than to immortalize him as an ancient creature that once roamed the sea?"

Kooteninchela deppi is a distant ancestor of lobsters and scorpions, along with spiders, centipedes, millipedes and crabs.

"Just imagine it," Legg exclaims, "the prawns covered in mayonnaise in your sandwich, the spider climbing up your wall, and even the fly that has been banging into your window and annoyingly flying into your face are all descendants of Kooteninchela deppi."

Hmm, we'll stick to thinking about Depp, instead.