In 2004 the discovery of an entirely jet-black color morph of Palpatophora utiliformis in the wilds of Northern California’s gold country rocked the world of occlupanology. The reliably observable coolness and perceived rarity of this discovery spurred the HORG Board of Taxonomy to undertake a novel action: It elevated the color morph of a known species into its own species designation.  Palpatophora stellanova has since both delighted and vexed synthetic systematists to this day, due to its novel coloration and otherwise utterly identical nature to P. utiliformis. Even though other jet-black occlupanids have since been discovered (such as Ampullaenigma thermastris and Lanciprendo rectangulus), and other occlupanids have been recorded as black color morphs, P. stellanova has stood fast, secure in its cladistic niche.