New monkey species named after web casino

A newly discovered species of monkey will be named after an online casino after the naming rights were sold in a web auction for $650,000.

The new species will henceforth go under the snappy moniker of GoldenPalace.com, after the winning bidder on the recent Charityfolks.com auction.

The monkeys were discovered in western Bolivia's Madidi National Park by Dr Robert Wallace of the Wildlife Conservation Society.

Dr Wallace relinquished the traditional right as discoverer of the species to have it named in his honour for the sake of conservation.

He said that he viewed the auction as an opportunity to raise funds and awareness for South America's poorest nation.

The winning bid will go to Fundesnap, the Bolivian organisation responsible for helping manage the Madidi National Park.

The funds will help maintain the monkeys' home, which as one of the most bio- diverse parks in the world contains a stunning array of habitat types, from lowland forests to alpine meadows surrounded by glaciers.

"We thought it was amazing. In Bolivia, the interest from that much money will pay for seven park guards forever," said Adam Felton, whose son and daughter-in-law helped Dr Wallace discover the new species.

GoldenPalace.com has announced that the common name, or name that people will use to refer to the new species, will be 'GoldenPalace.com Monkey'. The formal Latin name will be Callicebus aureipalatii.

In an unrelated announcement today US President George W. Bush, Vice President Dick Cheney and US Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld all had slime-mould beetles named after them by Dr Quentin Wheeler, head of entomology at the Natural History Museum in London.