Obtaining commercially unpopular Leps

General discussion on entomology
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Chuck
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Solomon Islands

Obtaining commercially unpopular Leps

Post by Chuck »

It came up in another thread that it's difficult to obtain some genera of Leps from less explored areas that aren't commercially popular.

It's not that these Leps don't exist in remote locations. Often they are common- but how many do I need to collect? And of course with limited commercial volume, it makes little sense for locals to collect or breed them.

One method is connecting with purported locals via internet/ email, though this has proven to be a scam more often than not, particularly for African connections.

The best method is networking. Know who is going where, and asking them to collect for you. The only reason I collected Sesiidae in Ecuador is because Charlie Covell wanted them; the only reason I collected (most) Lycaenidae in Solomon Islands is because John Tennent wanted them. Nobody seemed much interested in Satyrinae, so I collected only what I needed for reference, though I could have caught thousands with little effort.

When asking a field collector to catch you something, try to be generic if possible. One of our friends here asked me to collect a particular species of Hesperidae, and I spent days looking for the damned thing with zero results. It soured me on trying to collect Hesperidae, so I quit all together. This of course is no reflection on the requestor, but on my frustration; so best to ask someone to get you genera as by-catch and hope for the best.

On networking, it's important to have an established relationship. Asking a professional field entomologist to catch you stuff when you've never done anything for them is not going to be very successful. Better to build up a relationship early by helping THEM first.

"Only want perfect specimens" is a great way to ensure you get nothing. As field researchers know, one in 100 is perfect. It also paints the requestor as a bauble collector, which is often held with disdain by researchers. And, if said researcher does get that perfect one, why wouldn't they keep it for themselves?

I have running requests from others, and when I can catch something of their interest I do. All of them have gone out of their way to help me in the past. Personally speaking, if I've reached out to someone for assistance and got nothing in return, it's pretty obvious that said someone is going to get nothing. So the lesson is be generous before expecting.

There ARE field researchers collecting all over the world right now. You have to find them, and work with them.
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wollastoni
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Re: Obtaining commercially unpopular Leps

Post by wollastoni »

I agree.
Over the years, I have obtained some very rare Delias contacting some local universities, some missionaries, some local guys found on facebook, who were all originally very far from insect trade.

It takes a lot of time (and a bit of money), that's why you have to be specialised in one genus or one geographical area to do it well. You also need to know all the Western and Japanese collectors who may visit these areas (for remote areas, we are talking about 10/20 people) so it is easy.

And you need to be seen as an expert (of this genus or of this geographical area) to be contacted. I have co-described Delias maaikeae from the Cyclop Mountains of New Guinea because an American friend wrote me an email asking me what this "strange" Delias caught by one of his Dutch friend was. Same to be part of some official expeditions organized by some Museums.

Last thing : buying old collections. In France, we have some auction houses who are selling some old entomological collections. Sometimes, there are some species who have never been caught in the last 50 years (for political or environmental reasons). I have once bought a 200-drawer collection just to keep 2 Delias drawers... I will soon sell the remaining 198 drawers... In conclusion, you need to be a bit crazy too !
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