New butterfly genus named after Lord of the Rings villain Sauron

New butterfly genus named after Lord of the Rings villain Sauron

The Natural History Museum in London has named a new group of butterflies after the all-seeing villain Sauron from JRR Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings novels. The name Saurona was chosen by Dr Blanca Heurtas, the museum’s curator of butterflies, to draw attention to the species and promote research.

The black rings on the butterfly's orange wings reminded scientists of the all-seeing eye from the novels. Two butterfly species, Saurona triangular and Saurona aurigera, are the first members of the group, but more are expected to be added. Another genus, Argenteria, has also been named due to the silver scales on its wings.

Do you think it is appropriate to name newly discovered species after characters or objects from popular culture? Why or why not?