Bagheera kiplingi Bagheera kiplingi Bagheera kiplingi is a species of jumping spider found in Central America, including Mexico, Costa Rica, and Guatemala. It is the type species of the genus "Bagheera", which includes three other species, including "B. prosper". "B. kiplingi" is notable for its peculiar diet, which is mostly herbivorous. No other known species of spider has such a thoroughly herbivorous diet. The genus name is derived from Bagheera, the black panther from Rudyard Kipling's "The Jungle Book", with the species name honoring Kipling himself. Other salticid genera with names of Kipling's characters are "Akela", "Messua", and "Nagaina". All four were
The Jungle Book his scheme to develop the morale and fitness of working-class youths in cities. Akela, the head wolf in "The Jungle Book", has become a senior figure in the movement; the name is traditionally adopted by the leader of each Cub Scout pack. "The Jungle Book" has been adapted many times in a wide variety of media. In literature, Robert Heinlein wrote the Hugo Award-winning science fiction novel, "Stranger in a Strange Land" (1961), when his wife, Virginia, suggested a new version of "The Jungle Book", but with a child raised by Martians instead of wolves. Neil Gaiman's "The Graveyard Book"