It must be a huge honor for Lionel Messi to have a newly discovered plant species named after him. – I myself have someone I know well who should have a cactus named after him.
An academic study has been published on a peculiar new plant species that is only found in the Andes Mountains in central and southern Peru – and it is named after the 39-year-old Argentine football star.
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The species, which is classified as endangered, has been named Salvia messii after the football legend. The plant’s light blue and white flowers are similar in color to Argentina’s national team shirt. – So in other words… don’t pick
The International Rules of Botanical Nomenclature in Latin were followed in the naming process, meaning that the letter “i” was added to the end of the surname to mark affiliation. Salvia messii literally means “plant of Messi.”
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Strong Qualities
Salvia messii belongs to the Lamiaceae family, and its subspecies are known for their antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and antiseptic properties.
The plant can grow to around 1.5 meters tall. It is said to have an extreme adaptability that allows it to survive on rocky and dry slopes in the mountain range, and it is found between 2,000 and 2,400 meters above sea level.
The classification “endangered” is due to the consequences of climate change and forest fires.
The research behind the discovery – and the decision on the species name – was led by Paul Gonzales at the Natural History Museum at the National University of San Marco, the Argentine scientist Rolando Uria and the biologist Jean Capcha-Ramos from Huarango Nature.
Ended his national team career
Messi, who plays club football for Inter Miami, is widely recognized as one of football’s greatest players of all time, and he was one of the stars of this summer’s World Cup when Argentina reached the final.
He played his last international match earlier this month, having reached three World Cup finals – including his triumph in 2022 – and won two Copa America tournaments.
Earlier this year, experienced Cape Verdean goalkeeper Vozinha – also one of this summer’s World Cup profiles – was given a new species of marine mollusk named after him by Spanish scientist Jesus Ortea.
It wasn’t the first time Ortea, a professor of animal biology and zoology at the University of Oviedo, named a newly discovered species after a footballer. In 2019, he discovered a species of tiny marine sea snails, which he named after Keylor Navas – the former goalkeeper of Real Madrid and Costa Rica.
