Discovered in a Brazilian cave, Spaeleoleptes gimli is named after one of the main characters from J.R.R. Tolkien’s “The Lord of the Rings.” Scientists compared the spider to the dwarf Gimli because of his love of the Glittering Caves of Aglarond and his eventual lordship over the cave after the defeat of Sauron. The scientists wanted to have a name that would represent the spiders close relationship with their cave-dwelling habitat.
Source
Pereira, M. P., Gallão, J. E. ., Bichuette, M. E., & Pérez-González, A. (2024). Hidden in the caves: a new troglobitic species of Spaeleoleptes and the type species redescription (Opiliones, Laniatores). European Journal of Taxonomy, 921(1), 36-63. https://doi.org/10.5852/ejt.2024.921.2409
