A visit to the British Museum NH and Delias rarities.

[nomad]

Some of you may remember the thread that I wrote some time ago that there seemed to be no easy access to the British Museum of Natural History butterfly collections, and this particular thread received a lot of replies. The majority of which were most helpful . I was very pleased to have finally gained permission to visit the lepidoptera collections at the British Museum recently. I was asked to supply a short list of the species in the Pieridae genus Delias that I wished to study. I was allowed to take photographs and have a hands on approach, so that I could study the data labels. I have been kindly allowed permission to show some of my photographs here . Although I took these snapshot images and they were not taken in calibrated circumstances they still remain the copyright of the Trustees of the Natural History Museum and please do not reproduce them in any way. I would like give a few impressions of my day. Firstly, I did not then realize when I made an application some time ago, that there is only one curator for the whole of the butterfly collections and they have a very limited amount of time and most visitors have to be supervised. Of course, because of the high demand to see the very valuable collection, I see now that priority has to be given to those that are involved in writing papers or books on their chosen butterfly subjects. I would like to thank Blanca Huertas for her warm hospitality and giving me her valuable time during my visit. I did have a few teething problems with my new camera during my visit, but managed to get some reasonable images, that I hope you will enjoy. It was a wonderful day spent with some of the jewels or should I say jezebels of the butterfly world. Here are just a few of the many Delias rarities that the museum has. I have added my own research notes to add further interest. These are certainly some of my favourite specimens.

Peter.

[nomad]

Delias maudei and Delias bosnikiana

Delias maudei Joicey & Talbot 1915 and Delias bosnikiana Joicey & Noakes 1915 are two of the rarest species in the large Delias genus and there are only a handful of specimens in private collections. Both species were discovered by Felix, Charles and Joseph Pratt during the June of 1914 on Biak Island to the north of New Guinea. They remain one of the greatest mysteries in the butterfly world. The Pratts took a good series of Delias maudei [ c30 ) and few specimens of D. bosnikiana ( 11 ). Since the time of the Pratts successful visit to Biak a hundred years ago, only a couple of specimens of each species seem to have found there way into collections in the 1990's. The Pratts data labels have the date and just the name of the Island. However it is known that that Delias bosnikiana was named after the locality Bosnik where it was first found. In the transactions of the Entomological society for 1915 there is a complete review of the butterflies that were collected on Biak by the Pratt brothers during May & June 1914,the authors J.J. Joicey and A. Noakes state that all the new Delias including Delias maudei were found at Bosnik. Bosnik lies on the south-east coast of the Island and it here that the Dutch once had their government. Bosnik was visited a few years ago by a lepidopterist party, but perhaps only for the day, and they did not encounter a single Delias species. Today, most Europeans in Biak are tourists and those that visit Bosnik do so for its beautiful beaches. In their great monograph of which, I sadly do not have, Joicey and Talbot in 1916 quote Felix Pratt who was probably the leader of the expedition.

" There are no swamps on the island and behind Waridoon the west are undulating plains. Here in patches of secondary growth most of the Delias are found. One might stop a considerable time on Biak and get very few Delias. Perhaps a few euphemia males and, maybe, both sexes of multicolor ( ennia) if one happened to see the Jambosa tree in flower on the seashore. To get Delias particularly females, one must find flowering trees which they haunt and wait patiently under the branches during sunny hours ; 4pm is a good time for females. During the great heat of the day most things are still except in woods, where it is possible to come across females drinking. The female of euphemia is quite rare and very conspicuous, maudei is very rare indeed and bosnikiana is yet rarer

" So great tips by the Pratts for any that are lucky enough to visit Biak to search for these great rarities. A well know Delias expert who has much field experience in New Guinea has remarked that given the scale of commercial collecting in recent years on Biak , he finds it very surprising that no specimens of either species have come forth from that Island. It would be worthwhile finding out if there has been any significant habitat change in the Bosnik locality where these rarities were captured The Papuan Insect Foundation mentions that the southern part of the Island is cultivated?? Bosnik is only a short distance from the hub of Biak town and the Frans kaisiepo airport. If there has been large scale habitat change at Bosnik and both of these species were very rare in 1914 and confined to this small area, they could be even rarer now or could they have disappeared. It is certainly not yet possible untill further investigation declare them both extinct. Peter.

Delias Maudei. All images copyright of the trustees of the British Museum of Natural History. All specimens collected by F, C & J Pratt - Biak June 1914.


Male recto.


Female recto.


Male verso.


Female verso.


The B.M. Pratt series.



Bosnik beach Biak. If any wealthy collectors are reading this and wish to send me in search of these two extreme Delias rarities, I would be prepared to spend at least two months waiting patiently in this beautiful area under any sweet smelling blossom trees that I encounter. After all the Pratts did have the backing of George Talbot of the private Hill Museum.

[nomad]

Delias bosnikiana. Collected by the Pratt brothers at Bosnik Biak - June 1914. Images copyright of the trustees of the British Museum.


Verso paratype specimens. Female left - male right.


The BMNH series of Delias bosnikiana. The holotypes of this species and those of Delias maudei are kept in another drawer.

[nomad]

The specimens here were especially chosen because you are unlikely to see any fresh specimens of those species. If collectors are new to Delias they should join this group, some interesting feedback and new members would be most welcome.

www.facebook.com/groups/297099743704564

[anthony]

Thank you for sharing these pictures, how wonderful it would be to collect at Bosnik beach, winter here will not let go !

[nomad]

Another rarity that you will not find in many collections is Delias sacha Grose Smith 1895 from the Isse group. Two males were originally captured on Obi Island in the Moluccas by the American collector William Doherty in 1892. Obi Island is perhaps best known to collectors as the locality of the very beautiful turquoise Ornithoptera aesacus. It does seems that Doherty captured D. sacha in a coastal area. Obi Island has a very mountainous interior that is covered in rainforest, which has not been visited by entomologists. William Doherty [ 1857-1901 ] travelled extensively in the Far East collecting birds and butterflies for Lord Walter Rothschild. Doherty was only 44 when he died of dysentery at Nairobi in Africa.


Delias sacha syn-type male collected by William Doherty in May 1892 on Obi Island. Copyright trustees of the BMNH.


Although Obi Island seems to have been little visited by entomologists, two intrepid Ornithologists recently posted this video of their expedition to Obi in search of a rare bird. The video shows the very rough habitat of the interior of Obi Island. Also the other problems that explorer entomologists will face. I enjoyed this.

[Adam Cotton]

A Sphingid collector friend went to Obi a few years ago. He was confined to his hotel room by the police and told he could only buy specimens from locals, not set up a light trap himself.

Adam.

[nomad]

Hi Adam, why was your entomologist friend confined during his visit to Obi by the local police in this way??

[nomad]

I have been informed that there have been a few of males of Delias sacha on the market in the past few years, but no females.

[Adam Cotton]

Mar 30, 2014 7:46:56 GMT -8 nomad said:

Hi Adam, why was your entomologist friend confined during his visit to Obi by the local police in this way??

My friend said that they wanted him to spend money buying the specimens locals caught, and not go out to catch them himself. He wasn't allowed to leave the town, and was confined to his hotel at night. As far as I can remember he told me that he just gave up and went elsewhere, as that was not his idea of 'collecting' moths.

Probably they thought that he was there to collect specimens to sell back home, and wanted him to buy them instead. I guess that generally they only came across insect dealers, but my friend doesn't sell specimens at all. His idea of a good holiday is to go out and sit by a moth trap with a beer and cigarettes waiting for sphingids to fly in.

Adam.

[lepidofrance]

Pulau Obi : some French entomologists spent some days there last September and had no trouble. An other group will get there next year. Of course, with all the requested permits. See :

www.lepido-france.fr/2014/03/voyages-entomologiques-2014-2015/



It's true that you can meet on Pulau Obi some local insects collectors and dealers :

[nomad]

Mar 31, 2014 13:30:24 GMT -8 lepidofrance said:

Pulau Obi : some French entomologists spent some days there last September and had no trouble. An other group will get there next year. Of course, with all the requested permits. See :

www.lepido-france.fr/2014/03/voyages-entomologiques-2014-2015/



It's true that you can meet on Pulau Obi some local insects collectors and dealers :

Should be a great trip. Obi Island seems to have a interesting range of habitats, from coastal swamps and secondary forest to pure rainforest and mountains. Any Delias collected on the French 2013 expedition.

[africaone]

Mar 30, 2014 14:11:14 GMT -8 Adam Cotton said:

Mar 30, 2014 7:46:56 GMT -8 nomad said:

Hi Adam, why was your entomologist friend confined during his visit to Obi by the local police in this way??

My friend said that they wanted him to spend money buying the specimens locals caught, and not go out to catch them himself. He wasn't allowed to leave the town, and was confined to his hotel at night. As far as I can remember he told me that he just gave up and went elsewhere, as that was not his idea of 'collecting' moths.

Probably they thought that he was there to collect specimens to sell back home, and wanted him to buy them instead. I guess that generally they only came across insect dealers, but my friend doesn't sell specimens at all. His idea of a good holiday is to go out and sit by a moth trap with a beer and cigarettes waiting for sphingids to fly in.

Adam.

In Africa it is not unusual that you have to take with you for hunting 1 or 2 local people (that you have to pay ). They are usually son or brother of a local chief (a kind of soft racket). It is somtimes useful for you as they now the country (and the good places) and they can help in case of problem with other locals ! If you don't "accpet" it is the best to get problems.

[lepidofrance]

[/quote]In Africa it is not unusual that you have to take with you for hunting 1 or 2 local people (that you have to pay ). They are usually son or brother of a local chief (a kind of soft racket). It is somtimes useful for you as they now the country (and the good places) and they can help in case of problem with other locals ! If you don't "accpet" it is the best to get problems.[/quote]

Yes, it was alike for us in Cameroon (Ebogo) : it's not so expensive and it's very useful to get the best spots. In Papua, that's the ony way to prospect avoiding trouble with local people. Each time we arrived in a new village, we had a meeting with the village elders to build an agreement about the collecting organization and how much we had to pay local guides. This means that it's also very important to arrive in the said village with a first guide and translator who introduces you to the said elders.

Next year, visiting Bacan, Obi and so on, w'll have a good guide knowing everything about local guides and collectors (and authorities).

Picture : our guides in Arfak : Addi who was speaking bahasa indonesia and french, a Park Ranger (Indonesian) and two local guides (Papuans).



Guides in Ebogo (Cameroon) :



Sorry, I don't know if the french entomologists in Obi (September, 2013) met some Delias. I have to ask them. They were there mainly to make a motion picture about Ornithoptera.

[nomad]

Delias caliban [ Grose-Smith 1897 ] is a rare montane species that was discovered by Albert Stewart Meek in 1894 on Fergusson Island in the D' Entrecasteaux group of Papua New Guinea. Meek made his base camp at the village of Nadi on the north-east coast of the Island. At Nadi, Meek became very sick from a severe bout of malaria, but later managed to explore Mount Edagwaba and Mount Kikerran. Here he found the rare endemic Godie's Bird of Paradise ( Paradisea decora ) and two males of the new Delias caliban. Two decades later on his largest expedition to date in May 1913, Meek found in the mountainous interior of the nearby Goodenough Island a small series of D. caliban at 2500-4000ft, which Rothschild in 1915 named subspecies satisbona. The altitude placed on the Meek's data labels from his Goodenough expedition seem to occur on most of his entomological and Ornithological specimens. It is likely that D. caliban was captured at the upper end of Meek's collecting elevation. Meek had previously visited Goodenough Island in December 1896 to early 1897 and while he was trying to make his way up some of the highest peaks he mentions : -
" On the way up the mountains going through the garden of a village , I encountered a native who threatened me with a stone axe and tried to turn me back. I kept going steadily forward though he brandished a axe in my face, he came so close that I feared one time I would have to shoot him ". Shortly afterwards Meek had to retire from this island due to the hostility of the natives.

There have been no further captures of the the nominate D. Caliban from Fergusson Island since Meek's original discovery of this rare butterfly. A century after Meek's expedition the female of the nominate race still awaits discovery .There has been much habitat loss on Fergusson Island with a great reduction in its forests due to illegal logging. D. caliban satisbona was rediscovered on Goodenough Island a few years back on the summit of Mount Madawha at 2520 meters by the intrepid New Zealand collector explorer Laurie Wills.

Delias Caliban satisbona paratype specimens collected by A.S. Meek in May 1914 in the mountains of Goodenough Island May 1914. Images copyright of the trustees of the British Museum.


Male verso.


Male recto.


Female recto.