A blue iris by any other name

Commemorate your loved one by naming an entire species after them, and support the conservation of South Africa's unique natural heritage.

Fine art auctioneers Strauss & Co will for the first time in South Africa be auctioning the naming rights of a new species of a delicate flower, the blue iris, recently discovered near Saldanha on the West Coast.

All proceeds raised by the auction will support the World Wildlife Fund, a leading organisation in wildlife conservation and endangered species, in conjunction with Table Mountain Fund's Fynbos Land Protection Campaign, which works to protect and restore the natural wilderness of Table Mountain and the Cape, one of the most biologically rich but threatened places on earth.

"In the past, newly discovered species were named after royalty, patrons of science and even the explorers themselves. This auction gives the bidder the chance to immortalise their loved one by naming an entire species after them," says Stephen Welz, managing director of Strauss & Co.

The online auction is already open and will close in March, and will culminate in a charity dinner where guests will have the opportunity to beat the highest bid. The highest bidder wins the right to name this beautiful rare flower and will also receive the original botanical illustration of the iris.

"But, sadly, the rare and endangered species is already on the brink of extinction," says Dr Amy Goldblatt, who works as a fundraiser for the joint World Wildlife Fund and Table Mountain Fund's Fynbos Land Protection Campaign.

This delicate bulb flowers briefly in spring, putting on a show of exquisite pale blue flowers that sway gently in the sea breeze, before retreating again for another year.

In a bid to save the newly discovered iris and the other unique and threatened fynbos species, eminent plant taxonomist Dr John Manning of the South African National Biodiversity Institute, decided to give the naming rights for the iris to the World Wildlife Fund and Table Mountain Fund.

"Strauss & Co is pleased to support the WWF Table Mountain Fund by auctioning an aesthetic item of such value," adds Welz.

For more information or to bid online visit: www.straussart.co.za