As Vernon pointed out and solely about MONA, the inconsiderate and unethical activities by professionals isn't new. I too have had my issues with those types in Entomology (to be fair, I've also been overjoyed with others.) Backstabbing and politicing in entomology is NOTHING- I think the Paleontol...

Man, that's great! You survived a foreign country.

Would love to see some photos from CR.

Ironically, the technology that has made production of MONA-type publications much easier has also killed hardcopy. Imagine when MONA first came out- expensive cameras and lights, expensive film, having to pay for publications, collaboration via snail mail. THEN to make a book- scissors to cut image...

I sent an email to the Vietnam Department of Agriculture and still haven't heard back from them and that was 8 months ago, I leave the 30th of this month. I've contacted the US Department of Agriculture and even talked to someone and they said I don't need permits for importing dead insects in the ...

Yes, as 58chevy said, it's related to rubicunda. More here too viewtopic.php?p=8763&hilit=rubicunda#p8763

The good practice is to have a guide who will ask before entering a "land" the cost and negotiate it. Usually a pack of cigarettes + few dollars will make the job. If you don't negotiate "before", then they will ask you to pay "to leave the land"... and here the cost c...

Some fearmongering has been presented concerning foreign languages, this warrants some clarification. Humans are adept at learning foreign languages. It is not for the Mensa, or the linguistic experts. Even the most simple, uneducated, and slow person can learn multiple languages through exposure. I...

This comes up constantly. What should be done by an interested party is to analyze the current import regulations for personal use. The easiest way is to line-out the sections, paragraphs, and sentences that don't apply to personal use (eg. anything to do with commercial, institution, etc.) which le...

Although I've "lost" a kayak and other equipment, it was sneak thieves that saw an opportunity. Ah yes, the opportunistic petty thieves. Overall, I would say that petty theft (particularly from foreigners) has a level of cultural acceptance in many places. Certainly in parts of, or most o...

Very interesting to read about these various experiences, perspectives and comments - a lot of useful information in this thread, for anyone considering a collecting trip to the tropics. Really, a lot is applicable to USA as well. Aside from the permit & import element involved with internation...

Thanks Adam, you're the best! Let me reflect on age. I know a lot of collectors who, like me, planned to go "there" sometime "later." And they never got there. The reason is because by the time the travel became convenient they'd lost the ability. International travel is brutally...

Keep an eye out for pipevine and zebra swallowtails. Zebras should be flying in KY as soon as this storm front passes. Pipevines fly in FL pretty much year round; certainly they are out and abundant by now. Near Lake Ontario, I did see a Pieris rapae the last few days of March. Since then, nothing....

This discussion on Agrias has evolved into an important topic on global travel collecting, I hope it's split out on its own. John Shuey's initial post on the topic is loaded with gold, and I'd advise any potential traveler to parse every sentence. Global travel has never been easier. There are airfi...

Congratulations on finishing school! It's quite a bit of work and time.

My suggestion if I may- don't buy commercially, use that money to go there. You're young enough to learn to handle the hardships and maximize collecting efforts. Why buy one when you can catch ten?

Paul- iNaturalist tries to stay on top of systematics, but sometimes there can be a delay. sara https://www.inaturalist.org/observations?taxon_id=59124 stella https://www.inaturalist.org/observations?taxon_id=900256 all Anthocheris julia https://www.inaturalist.org/observations?taxon_id=900255

Danaus plexippus is all over the place.

I have captures from several locations in Solomon Islands.

University of Hawai'i on Oahu has a light morph, and on Maui can be found a dark morph.

Hello all! Does anyone in the United States have any experience with purchasing insects at this fair and then importing them to the US? I would really like to go but I am not exactly sure about the process of exporting from France. Of course I would use my American import license and fill out a for...

Chuck, I direct you to view our 30-year sphingids of Louisiana study. .... taken in fermenting bait traps included Sphinx kalmiae Neurn., Enyo lugubris (L.), Sphecodina abhottii (Swainson), A. floridensis, Darapsa myron, and Darapsa pholus (Cram.). We captured several specimens each of species not ...

Thanks thus far for the input. I'm rather caught in the middle- I like to keep things short, which at times requires the reader's understanding that there are exceptions. If I have to write something like "chances of finding Papilio multicaudata east of the Mississippi are .00001%" for eve...

Vernon, what types of Sphingids do you get at bait traps? What do they like best? Thanks.