LONDON, Jan 6 — A new tree species has been named after actor Leonardo DiCaprio as a tribute to the Hollywood star’s anti-logging campaigning, London’s Royal Botanic Gardens announced today.
The tree’s scientific name — Uvariopsis dicaprio — recognises the 47-year-old US actor’s work to prevent logging in the endangered forest, where the only known specimen of the tree was found growing. The concession was cancelled months later by Cameroon’s President Paul Biya, “surely partly due to his support”, the scientists wrote in“We very much appreciated the support Leo gave us in campaigning to protect Ebo last year so it seemed fitting to honour him in this way,” said Martin Cheek, who leads the Africa team in Kew’s identification and naming department.