Yes, I can see it now; "Hi, my name is kovach and I have a plant named after me, can you see that I get a good table."
New hybrid list - RHS
- Thread starter li'l frog
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Candace
Well-Known Member
E
Eric Muehlbauer
Guest
Unfortunately, or maybe fortunately, depending on your view, what counts in the naming of a species is priority in publishing. You could choose to name a species after Adolf Hitler or Charles Manson, and it would be acceptable if proper procedures were followed, and the earliest publication has priority. If Olaf is right, and peruvanum had been used before on a different plant, there is no escaping the correctness of the name "kovachii", regardless of how offensive it may seem. Thousands of species are named every year.....most are tiny little insects or invisible fungi, and no one cares about who gets honored....The spectacular finds that inspire passions, like P. kovachii, are literally 1 in many 1000's...it doesn't make sense to re-write the rules of scientific priority that have been in place for decades, if not more than a century, for these very rare exceptions....Take care, Eric
li'l frog
Well-Known Member
Of course, the name is now etched in stone; and I don't expect that Mr. K will be caging free drinks or better tables at restaurants because of it. But we orchid people live in a small pond, and know and know of each other, and in our little pond, this is a big deal. I know it can't be changed now, but i am still happy that RHS has put an * next to the name -- like baseball players who may or may not take drugs, or runners with wind-assisted records. Some of us will remember.
..and not buy the plant?
li'l frog
Well-Known Member
The plant, fortunately, will grow and prosper without consciousness of who it is named for. Buying or not buying the plant has no effect on Mr. K, unless you buy it, or not, from him. It would be an idle protest. The legal plants in the system are not connected in any way to the origin of the name. Mine are still growing, and making new leaves, but slowly. I have one hybrid, which looks exactly the same as the day I got it, about a month ago.
Sorry to bump this but the Barry Bonds indictment reminded me...
li'l frog
Well-Known Member
And there are rumors of a possible official protest to the naming, with the taxonomic authorities. Anybody know what's going on?
I don't think the taxonomists have a leg to stand on.
