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SportsCape Verde goalkeeper Vozinha honored with newly-discovered sea slug species named after him
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A new species of marine mollusk, a small red sea slug about four millimeters in size, has been named Aldisa vozinhai (Vozinha's sea slug) after Cape Verde's 40-year-old goalkeeper Vozinha. The species was discovered in the Caribbean near Havana, Cuba and Guadeloupe by Spanish researcher Jesus Ortea, who published his work in Historias de la Bioadversidad. Ortea, a professor at the University of Oviedo, named the species to honor Vozinha's standout performances in the 2026 World Cup, including a man-of-the-match display against Spain with seven saves. Vozinha became the oldest player to debut in a World Cup at age 40 years and 12 days. His Instagram following grew from 50,000 to 28.5 million after the tournament. This is Ortea's second time naming a species after a goalkeeper, having previously named a sea snail after Keylor Navas in 2019.
Source report
By: Colin Millar
A new species of marine mollusk discovered in the Caribbean has been named after Cape Verde goalkeeper Vozinha, following his standout performances at this summer’s World Cup.
The 40-year-old shot-stopper was one of the tournament’s most notable players, and Spanish researcher Jesus Ortea has now immortalized him in the scientific community. Ortea named the newly-discovered species in his published work Historias de la Bioadversidad (translated into English as Biodiversity Stories).
The Discovery
- The new species is a small sea slug of red appearance, approximately four millimeters in size, previously unknown to science.
- It has been named Aldisa vozinhai (in English, “Vozinha’s sea slug”).
- The species was discovered in the Caribbean near Havana, Cuba, and the island of Guadeloupe.
Ortea timed the publication of his work to coincide with the World Cup, including Vozinha’s man-of-the-match performance in Cape Verde’s surprise 0–0 opening draw against European champions Spain, where he made seven crucial saves.
A Personal Tribute
Ortea emphasized that naming the species after Vozinha was his way of thanking the people of Cape Verde. The researcher was awarded the Medal of Environmental Merit by the nation in 2023, in recognition of his contributions to the study of Marine Biodiversity on the archipelago.
This is not the first time Ortea, a professor of Animal Biology and Zoology at the University of Oviedo, has named a newly-discovered species after a footballer. In 2019, he named a species of tiny marine sea snail after Keylor Navas, the former goalkeeper of Real Madrid and Costa Rica.
Vozinha’s World Cup Journey
- Vozinha became the oldest player to appear in a nation’s debut World Cup match, at 40 years and 12 days old.
- He played in all four of Cape Verde’s matches, keeping a clean sheet against Saudi Arabia as the archipelagic nation advanced to the last 32.
- He impressed again in Cape Verde’s 3–2 extra-time loss to defending champions Argentina, making seven saves.
Social Media Surge
Vozinha’s tournament debut dramatically boosted his online presence. His Instagram account, which had 50,000 followers before the match, has since grown to 28.5 million followers at the time of writing.
Career Background
Vozinha’s two-decade career includes spells at club teams in Cape Verde, Moldova, Slovakia, Cyprus, and Portugal. He is a 91-time Cape Verde international.
For further reading: Meet Vozinha, the 40-year-old Cape Verde hero who almost quit before the World Cup
Source
Soccer - The AthleticWestern
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Sea slug species named after Cape Verde goalkeeper Vozinha for World Cup heroics