#sidney pierce

The next time you head to the coast to enjoy the Tampa Bay waters, you may stumble upon a Pierce's Cyerce—a recently-discovered sea slug species that is being named after Sidney "Skip" Pierce, emeritus professor of integrative biology at the University of South Florida. After a 45-year career dedicated to intricately studying the cells of animals with a focus on sea slugs, Pierce's colleagues found it fitting to honor him with his own species. "Now my name will go on for a long time after I'm gone," said Pierce, who retired in 2014. "It's an honor."