Johannesburg - Former president Nelson Mandela will be remembered not only for his political role in South Africa, but also for the quirky things named after him, including a sea slug.
Marine biologists Angel Vlades and Terry Gosliner found the Mandelia Micocornata in 1999, according to the Nelson Mandela Centre of Memory's website.
On the SouthAfrica.Info website, the two are quoted as saying:
“It is regarded as something of an honour to have a species of organism named after you.
“To have a genus named after you is even more of an honour because new genera are less often named than new species. However, an even greater honour is to have a family named after you because new families are rarely created.”
They said they named it after Mandela to honour him.
“This South African genus is named Mandelia to honour Nelson Mandela, who led the struggle for a multiracial government in South Africa.”
In 2002, a species of spider, found near Cape Town, was named Singafrotypa Mandela.
According to Wikipedia, Anelosimus Nelsoni is another species of spider found in KwaZulu-Natal, and is named after the elderly statesman.
In the United Kingdom, at the British Institute of Physics at Leeds University, there is a nuclear particle named the “Mandela Particle”.
In Columbia, there is a tree named after Madiba, while in Singapore the Paravanda Nelson Mandela is an orchid.
South Africa has a striking deep red Protea called Madiba.
Another is Mandela's Gold, a rare yellow crane flower plant that grows in France, the USA, Australia, Japan and in South Africa.
The australopicus nelsonmandelai is a woodpecker species French and German scientists found at the Langebaanweg fossil site.
According to the Nelson Mandela Centre of Memory there are numerous racehorses around the world named after the man.
Another odd item named after Mandela is a computer game, in which Mandela escapes Robben Island to free his daughter Zindzi.
And Danzas Mandela is not a relative of his, but a Venezuelan music group.
And the list goes on. - Sapa