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Post by beetlehorn on Feb 23, 2019 5:32:56 GMT -8
I must confess, I am a collector. I began collecting in the mid-1950's. Now, I design build, market and ship to a global market the equipment used by professional and amateur entomologists. I am indirectly responsible for the death of billions of insects every year. However, automobile manufactures produce the best and most efficient means to kill insects, mamauls (Big and small, including humans), birds, bugs, arthropods, and dumb ass politicans, the Automobile. Need I say anymore? It would be easier to change the course of the Mississippi River than explain this to a female politician. Great point Leroy. It is a fact that the number of not only butterflies but all insects that are killed on highways, back roads, and even city streets each year is much greater than all insects that were ever collected throughout history. Yet they still remain well intact. Much of the opposition to collecting is based upon how the opposing party "feels" in regards to collecting, instead of basing their position on facts.
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Post by beetlehorn on Feb 22, 2019 21:08:12 GMT -8
A friend of mine sent me a link to some spectacular footage. After seeing it the second time I thought it would be a nice gesture to share it here. I might be inclined to try what these guys are doing in this video. I think the music is a compliment to the scenery.
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Post by beetlehorn on Feb 22, 2019 9:44:16 GMT -8
What bothers me is the self-righteous attitude of anti-collecting groups such as NABA (North American Butterfly Association). They arrogantly declare that collecting is wrong and that collecting harms populations. They speak from ignorance. Because of the enormous rate at which insects reproduce, collecting has little to no effect on populations (except in rare, isolated habitats). What does deplete butterfly populations is widespread destruction of habitat by unbridled real estate development (fueled by overpopulation), large corporate farming (which not only destroys habitat but also pollutes the land with agricultural chemicals), and the lumber industry (legal or otherwise). Why do NABA-type organizations pick on us collectors instead of the real offenders? I started collecting decades before NABA existed, and I enjoyed a fun, educational, lifelong hobby until those johnny-come-lately upstarts arrived on the scene. Now I have to worry about encountering those know-it-alls every time I go out. They are ruining our hobby. I'm usually polite to them until they start their senseless anti-collecting rants. When they persist, I'm always tempted to forcefully insert my net handle into a region of their anatomy where the sun don't shine. I fully agree with you. I know of a multitude of places where the bulldozers and chainsaws have laid waste to Prime habitats. One guy with a net (me), could never have had the devastating effects on any of those places like they did. The sad fact about this is that these locations will never recover from the destruction they suffered.
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Post by beetlehorn on Feb 17, 2019 12:06:16 GMT -8
Wow!, You must be in the deep south of the US. Here in Tennessee, I don't usually see Orangetips until late March or early April.
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Post by beetlehorn on Feb 16, 2019 3:42:38 GMT -8
I'll bet you got your share of butt-whippings when you were a kid. You are right though....Walmart does provide some great entertainment. A good friend of mine and I were standing in line at our local Wally-world when he noticed a rather huge one wearing some kind of spandex pants. The material looked like it was screaming for help, but that wasn't the worst of it......at the upper part of her thigh was a hole in the material where the fat poked through. Upon seeing this my friend nudged me and said -"don't that look like a mushroom growing out of her leg"?!?
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Post by beetlehorn on Feb 14, 2019 19:55:03 GMT -8
One argument on our side is that our collecting activities actually preserve specimens of an entire species. Go collect any butterfly, pin it, and curate it in a collection. Many years later the specimen is still intact, yet all others of that generation have long since turned to dust. It is a far left viewpoint to condemn the taking of one animal for any reason, then to glorify the taking of another for any reason. Totally Illogical!
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Post by beetlehorn on Feb 10, 2019 19:54:42 GMT -8
Spring is just around the corner-(so to speak). I am seeing Daffodils with blossoms on them already, and my privet bushes are showing signs of new growth. I start seeing fresh violets coming out in mid March here in Tennessee, so you are not that far behind in Illinois. I am so glad to hear of your success. This would be a major breakthrough in Speyeria/Argynnis rearing.
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Post by beetlehorn on Feb 1, 2019 20:19:56 GMT -8
If I were a kid again.....(with one condition- knowing what I know now). I would have collected more specimens of each species I encountered during my early years. I would also have taken much better care of them so that they would not have been damaged and lost to dermestids. Losing entire collections is one of my biggest regrets in life! Having the diligence to take care of irreplaceable things sometimes comes too late.
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Post by beetlehorn on Jan 25, 2019 19:24:11 GMT -8
Well, it all really depends on which species you are after. Here in Tennessee the very first Saturnids to appear are the spring form of Actias lune, which is really the most vibrant and handsome form of the species. They are usually on the wing in late March to early April. Then as the season goes on they gradually change and vary into the summer forms. Another early Saturnid is Sphingicampa bicolor. The very first ones have gray colored forewings, with burgundy hindwings,(the later generations are orange-brown in coloration). If you are in the right area, you might find Callosamia promethia in April. Although if you are after this species you would be better served in hunting for the cocoons which can be found hanging from Wild cherry, Sassafras, or even Persimmon trees. Late May into early June you might encounter Hyalophora cecropia, which usually flies in the late hours into the early morning. At the same time you will almost certainly find Antheraea polyphemus. All of the species I mentioned above can be encountered in late May, but A. luna (the spring form) is gone by then. Here is a perfect example of an early spring form of the Luna Moth.
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Post by beetlehorn on Jan 24, 2019 20:08:51 GMT -8
I still have a few of the older riker mounts like the ones you mentioned here. I am also looking for the older cotton filled mounts, but so far have come up empty handed. Not only is the cotton softer, and thereby easier on the specimen, but the overall quality of the riker frame with things like data and scientific formats on the back, as well as the material and texture of the borders, makes them a much better storage system for cherished specimens. The cotton does turn a dull yellow in time, whereas the polyfill remains white, but I can overlook this characteristic for the better quality of the older rikers.
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Post by beetlehorn on Jan 24, 2019 1:24:36 GMT -8
I appreciate all of the responses. This question regarding our reasons for collecting is a deeply personal, self analyzing venture into one's motives and personality. For me collecting has a sense of purpose that satisfies the need to know, and acquire a piece of the natural world. Preserving even a common butterfly that displays and represents the species' characteristics just seems to have a meaning that goes beyond acquiring some material posession such as a new watch or other man made gadget. Then there is the encounter with a species I have never actually seen other than in a book. The excitement of actually finding it and pursuing it is burned into a memory that lasts a lifetime. Having a nicely curated collection with data labels also gives the collector a sense of pride and accomplishment that is rarely attained otherwise. I have purchased and/or traded specimens as well as captured and reared specimens. I must say that even the purchased specimens that I have personally mounted and displayed in my collection are cherished because they are of special interest to me, otherwise I would never have acquired them. Also being able to post images of specimens, and collections on forums such as this one, gives a collector the opportunity to share with and educate other fellow collectors and naturalists of what we have uncovered and preserved. I know I have gained a great deal of knowledge from this forum, not only in terms of unknown-to me insects, but also in collecting techniques and equipment.
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Post by beetlehorn on Jan 19, 2019 10:52:36 GMT -8
I have collected insects, especially Lepidoptera since I was a boy. I'm sure many of you collectors out there have been doing it for a long time now as well. One question that crossed my mind is.......why? What is it about collecting that drives us to pursue the activity so passionately? We don't gain anything nutritionally from it, and monetarily the cost outweighs any profit we would gain. Then there is the time involved in collecting, mounting, and storing insects, which actually uses up space in our homes or apartments. So what does is it for you to either go collecting, or buy and trade bugs for a collection? We are a species that puts value on something such as this that is practically non-essential for our daily survival, yet we go after it like it is a prize to be won. I have my reasons, but am interested in what others have to say on this matter.
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Post by beetlehorn on Jan 19, 2019 6:42:38 GMT -8
Very nice collections Paul! I appreciate the clean presentation and how well you have them mounted. The attention to details like wing symmetry, and proper antennae placement are the mark of a professional. I also enjoy the specimen variety you have here. All I can say is.... WOW!
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Post by beetlehorn on Jan 19, 2019 6:26:28 GMT -8
Here in America there is too much corporate greed for socialized medicine to work, as well as too many people benefiting from working mans tax dollars that never paid into the system. That includes illegal immigrants. Remember when Obama promised that you could keep your doctor, and that costs would go down in terms of medical care and insurance rates? Well....exactly the opposite happened. Insurance premiums under the "health marketplace" more than doubled in most places, and only a certain group of people actually benefit from this system. The rest of working Americans ended up paying the bill for them. I am not saying that the health care systems don't work in countries like the aforementioned Denmark, just that there are too many variables in America to implement a functioning system that everyone would be happy with. When you consider how many issues we have to deal with such as foreign affairs, international trade, illegal immigration, a volatile political climate, rising medical cost-(which is ridiculously high anyway), and just the whole attitude of most Americans, it would be a monumental accomplishment to put in place some system of health care that covers everyone. Now there is so much focus on the wall and immigration, it seems like the health care issue has been put on the "back burner" so to speak.
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Post by beetlehorn on Jan 17, 2019 4:41:56 GMT -8
So perhaps we should be looking more seriously at tactics like E-verify to curb the attraction for illegals to come to the states and get work. Then again it seems to me that the ones that actually want to work are not the problem here. Given the numbers listed on paps post, the ones that are coming in committing serious crimes, and bringing in drugs, as we can all see, are a major problem....even if the numbers were half or a third of what is claimed. So how do you tell the good ones from the bad? The vetting process would really delay (legal) immigration, and if we suddenly force employers to verify legal status and turn down anyone that cannot prove citizenship, the crime rate would go up because they can't earn any money by working, so they'll resort to other means of getting it. I don't believe they would just go back home to Mexico because things didn't work out for them here. So what's the solution? Round up the ones causing trouble (if you can catch them), separate the ones that are trying to make an "honest" living by working for their money, and get them on the path towards legal citizenship? I don't know. Then again if there's nobody left to do the low paying crap jobs, how would this affect us economically?!? Right now we are at a stalemate with the government shutdown. Only time will tell how the wall issue will turn out. One thing for sure, all of this controversy has really focused attention to the issue at hand. Perhaps something good will come of it all, but that is only wishful thinking.
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