It may not be an Oscar, but it’s “spectacular” to look at nonetheless, says a scientist at the UK’s Royal Botanic Gardens. Dr. Martin Cheek is referring to the newly named tree Uvariopsis dicaprio, which is known to grow in just a single forest in Cameroon.
The tropical, evergreen tree is the first plant species to be named as new to science in 2022, and scientists at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, said they wanted to honor actor and environmentalist Leonardo DiCaprio for his help in saving the Ebo Rainforest Forest in Cameroon from logging, per the BBC.
“We think he was crucial in helping to stop the logging of the Ebo Forest,” said Dr. Cheek. Scientists and conservationists were horrified when they heard of plans to allow vast swathes of the Ebo Forest to be opened up for logging.
Standing at around 4 meters tall, U. dicaprio can be identified by the distinctive and vibrant glossy yellow-green flowers that grow on its trunk. According to New Scientist, it is closely related to the ylang-ylang tree (Cananga odorata) which is native to India, South-East Asia, the Philippines, Indonesia, and Australia.
“This is a plant which, for a botanist, just jumps out at you,” says Cheek. “It’s so spectacular.”
Today, fewer than 50 individual trees have been spotted, and they are all confined to a single, unprotected area of Ebo forest. As a result, U. dicaprio is considered critically endangered.
A complete description of U. dicaprio, including notes on its pollination, biology, and endangered species status was officially published in PeerJ this week.
With so few specimens found in the wild, it highlights the importance of documenting new species when they are discovered.
“The planet is a poorer place when we lose the species that have taken, in most cases, millions of years to evolve,” says Cheek. “With so many useful products, from medicines to food to fibers, that come from plants, we don’t know what options we’re losing when these become extinct.”
“It’s only once we know that a species exists, that we can do anything about getting it protected,” says Cheek.
