In 2025, the Missouri Botanical Garden described a new moonlight cactus species from Costa Rica named what?

In 2025, the scientific community celebrated the formal description of a new moonlight cactus species from Costa Rica, known as Selenicereus haberi. This significant botanical discovery was made by researchers associated with the Missouri Botanical Garden. The species was identified and documented, adding to the rich biodiversity of Central America and highlighting the ongoing efforts to catalog the world's plant life.

The genus Selenicereus, commonly referred to as moonlight cacti or night-blooming cereus, is renowned for its large, often fragrant flowers that typically open only at night, attracting nocturnal pollinators like moths and bats. The journey to formally describe Selenicereus haberi spanned over two decades, beginning when tropical entomologist William Haber provided a cutting of a unique cactus to Barry Hammel, a retired curator from the Missouri Botanical Garden. Haber suspected the plant was distinct from other known moonlight cacti. Years later, when the cutting finally flowered in Hammel's yard in Costa Rica, its distinctive features, such as larger flowers and rose-red, nearly spineless fruit, confirmed it as a new species, which was then named in honor of William Haber.

This discovery underscores the critical role botanical gardens play in global plant conservation and research. Each year, institutions like the Missouri Botanical Garden describe hundreds of new plant species, many of which are critically endangered. Naming a new species is the essential first step in understanding and protecting it, allowing scientists to develop strategies to ensure its survival for future generations.