 Between 1920s and 1930s, Dr. John K. Small extensively studied irises in both Florida and Louisiana and named over 80 new species, including "Iris savannarum", Iris kimballiae, Iris albispiritus and Iris rivularis.Subsequent research has determined that only "Iris savannarum" is a true species and the others are synonyms of it.In 1990, the Louisiana iris was voted the state wildflower of Louisiana.