Lionel Messi's name will definitely go down in history as one of football's all-time great players. But the Argentine superstar is set to be immortalised in another, rather unexpected way: a plant has been named in his honour.
Naming species from the world of Flora after celebrities is not a new thing. In some cases, the naming aims at shedding more light on an endangered species to help raise awareness and protect it.
Below are six among the plants and species that were named as a tribute to famous people worldwide:
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1. Salvia messii
The Salvia messi was recently discovered and earned its name thanks to its white and light blue flowers that mimic the colours of the jerseys worn by Argentina's national team.
Messi, who is 39 years old, has worn the Argentine jersey plenty of times since the beginning his international career in 2005. The star of MLS' Inter Miami team, Messi announced his retirement from international play in August.
For Argentina, he made 208 appearances and finished with 126 goals, 71 assists and six official titles, which include a World Cup, a Finalissima and two Copa America titles.
The whole plant name follows the historic botanical naming convention, adding the letter "i" at the end aims at recognising the plant is named after a person. The lower-case spelling of his name is dictated by the same rule.
Salvia messii
2. Gaga
A genus of 19 species of ferns in the family Pteridaceae were named after American singer and songwriter Lady Gaga.
Two of the 19 species are called Gaga germanotta, which is from Costa Rica and named after the family of the singer (she was born Stefani Germanotta), and Gaga monstraparva, in honour of Gaga's fans, whom she calls "little monsters".
According to biologists, the ferns bear a close resemblance to Gaga's costume from the 52nd Annual Grammy Awards and also bear a distinct DNA sequence spelling GAGA.
Gaga arizonica
3. Nepenthes attenboroughii
Who would be more worthy of naming a plant after him than the late famous British naturalist Sir David Attenborough? A montane species of carnivorous pitcher plant of the genus Nepenthes was named Nepenthes attenboroughii in honour of the broadcaster who was a leading voice on climate change and biodiversity loss. Attenborough celebrated his 100th birthday in May.
he species is characterised by its large, distinctive, bell-shaped lower and upper pitchers and narrow, upright lid. The type specimen was collected on the summit of Mount Victoria, an ultramafic mountain in central Palawan, the Philippines.
The species is listed as Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.
Nepenthes attenboroughii
4. Daviesia schwarzenegger and Daviesia devito
A specis of flowering plant in the family of Fabaceae that is endemic to south-eastern continental Australia was named after the famous action movie star Arnold schwarzenegger and fellow actor Danny Devito.
In 2017, a botanist called Michael Crisp and others devided the Daviesia sub species to two specific epithets (devito and schwarzenegger), which are references to DeVito and Schwarzenegger, the main actors in the Universal Studios 1988 film Twins.
The Daviesia schwarzenegger grows in mallee and woodland in scattered populations from the Eyre Peninsula in South Australia, to the area between Charlton and Rushworth in Victoria, and to near Condobolin in New South Wales.
Daviesia schwarzenegger
Daviesia devito
5. Caloplaca obamae
Caloplaca obamae, a species from Santa Rosa Island in California was named after former US President Barack Obama.
Kerry Knudsen, lichen curator of the University of California, Riverside Herbarium, discovered the species in 2007 while doing a survey for lichen diversity on Santa Rosa Island in California. "I named it Caloplaca obamae to show my appreciation for the president's support of science and science education," he said.
Caloplaca obamae
6. Nepenthes ‘Helen’
The Oscar-winning actress Dame Helen Mirren has a carnivorous pitcher plant named in her honour. She unveiled it at the Chelsea Flower Show in 2011.
Nepenthes ‘Helen’ is a cultivated hybrid, not a plant species found naturally in the wild.
Nepenthes ‘Helen’