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.

When to use absolutes? "You NEVER run the vacuum!" This is hyperbole; I ran the vacuum two months ago. And so, in research discussions one will rarely see "always", "never", or other absolutes. One cannot accurately say, for example, that a Goliath beetle has never been...

In collaborating on the description of the Midsummer Tiger Swallowtail as a distinct species, @eurytides requested that I describe the ranges of the eastern Tiger Swallowtail species- glaucus , canadensis , and appalachiensis . Ironically, despite the taxa being large, showy, and first described by ...

When I was a kid- younger than 10- I wrote him for a price list. It was all hand written, and not knowing any better, I closed with "Love, Chuck." I quickly realized that was inappropriate, but wasn't going to rewrite the whole letter, so sent it. I never got a price list. I wonder why. Sa...

I was reading an enjoyable article on Danaus gilippu s in LepSoc Journal Spring 2024 when the following map caught my eye: https://c.l3n.co/i/OjTVL0.md.jpeg Huh? Everyone knows that Danaus plexippus breeds all the way up into Canada. Right? The purpose of the map is to demonstrate the lack of compet...

Frustrated that all of my specimen photos are either too dark (cloudy day) or have a shadow, I broke down and bought a ring light. This one is low-end, and you get what you pay for. It wasn't as shown on the box, and it isn't what's in the instructions. Some parts discussed in the manual have been v...

Ha, John it never occurred to me that the book would be ESPECIALLY interesting and useful for those living in Virginia! Yes, it's sad to now look back and see how so many species are extirpated from the lands they once occupied. I did find it interesting that in the early 20th century they reported ...

https://c.l3n.co/i/O8meMi.md.jpeg I pulled this book out to research something, and got caught reading it. I'd forgotten just how wonderfully chock full it is with information. It's not just about Virginia's butterflies- it goes into extensive observations by Mr. and Mrs. Clark and other researcher...

eurytides wrote: ↑Wed Mar 27, 2024 4:21 pm Chuck, what happens with the genus Amphion? I thought this was still legit?

My error- old age. Amphion is valid, the species name was changed from nessus to floridensis. It's still nessus to me. I ain't changing any labels either.