May 23, 1894: 124 years ago

Today is the famous botanist Carl Linnaeus' birthday, born on May 23, 1707.  Linnaeus was hugely influential in taxonomy and nomenclature, having named and described many species.

This specimen of Fritilaria meleagris was collected in Linnaeus' home country of Sweden, in 1894, 187 years to the day after he was born.  Not surprisingly, this species was named by Linnaeus, and included in his classic publication, Species Plantarum​ (1753).  Many formal scientific names are followed by "L." denoting Linnaeus as the authority attributed to naming the species.