PRISTINA, Kosovo (AP) — Restrictions during the coronavirus pandemic helped Kosovar biologist Halil Ibrahimi sit down and complete his research, raise public awareness of the pollution of river basins — and name a new insect after the virus. The caddisfly species, which is smaller and is found at higher altitudes than similar ones elsewhere in the Balkans, is now called the Potamophylax coronavirus. During his research, Ibrahimi also noticed that the river where the new species was found has severely deteriorated over recent years due to the construction of a hydropower plant. He called on people to better protect river basins because their pollution “has the same effect on the species living in the rivers that the coronavirus is causing to humankind these days.”
