best white Lepidoptera

[saturniidave]

I can't say for the rest of Europe but here in the U.K. 99% of entomologists are strictly amateur. The few professionals either work at the Natural History Museum in London or for the Government i.e. DEFRA
I know many collectors here from all walks of life from doctors and veterinary surgeons to motor mechanics and shop workers, but I only know one or two professionals.
Most of the people here with an interest in insects are 'bug-huggers' or strictly photographers, they are the ones who expect me to be able to identify any British moth by a photo of it in repose, even when the underwings or genitalia need to be examined to determine the species. They seem puzzled when I say I need to see other parts to identify it.
There are a lot of 'Antis' here also who can cause trouble so one needs to keep a low profile when collecting. Plus of course the yob element who delight in beating up 'nerds' who collect insects.
Regarding pinned specimens, well I tried three times to sell cases of 'pretty butterflies' with very limited success, folks just aren't interested even from a decorative point of view. I used to do quite well with British leps at one of the insect fairs but sadly that one has moved to a venue too distant for me to get to. There is the London Insect Fair but most visitors to there these days want to buy live spiders and stick insects, or the few real collectors are only after the rare stuff or the occasional bargain. I used to do this fair regularly but I will not bother this year as I barely made enough to cover my costs at the last two shows.
As to a shop like the Deyrolle one, well there is certainly none in London and if there was I do not think they woulddo much business. The only one I know that is remotely similar is Watkins and Doncaster out here in Kent.
Dave

[bobw]

I have to agree with what Dave says. I don't believe there have been any shops like Deyrolle's in London at least since WW2. Companies like WWB and W&D have had shops in the past - the ones in Lyme Regis and Brighton spring to mind - but they didn't last too long so presumably they weren't economically viable.

I have also given up trying to sell specimens at shows here in Britain. Leicester/Kettering used to be reasonable but since its demise I've given Newark a go twice and sold a grand total of £10 worth of specimens, failing to cover my costs of about £150, so I won't be going there again. Kempton Park is a little better but the last few years I did it I only just covered my costs. Now they've moved back to their normal date it clashes with Prague and I'd always rather go there.

I know most of the people that work at BMNH so I guess I know a few more professionals, but as Dave says, there is no longer much tradition of professional entomologists in this country; this seems to be in stark contrast to the US, where there seem to be several entomologists working in universities - I certainly regularly correspond with several of them.

The huge contrast in attitudes to collecting in Britain and the US never ceases to amaze me. I haven't done any collecting here for several years now, but when I did I would only ever carry a spring net in my pocket and make sure nobody was in sight before getting it out. I'd get so much grief from anyone who saw me, even when collecting in one of the few places with no collecting restrictions, that it just wasn't worth it. I've done four longish collecting trips in the US in recent years and was shocked at first when my collecting companion would happily tell anyone we met that we were collecting butterflies. Without exception, everyone we met thought it was really "cool" and wanted to talk about it and see specimens. Even officials in National Forests wished us luck.

In contrast, regulations mean that it's incredibly expensive for anyone in the US to import/export deadstock and almost impossible to import/export livestock. Here there are virtually no restrictions except on CITES species.

Bob

[thanos]

'otherwise, yes it is very expansive and without scientific interest.'

- Yes. I visited it in my 15's . The quality of many specimens is also not good. That time I spent really too much money from my father's wallet, for buying some super-over-priced not rare (but impressive) specimens of second quality (Argema mittrei with glued abdomen/antennae, beetles with missing/glued tarsa, Thysania agrippina with missing antennae,etc). Collecting data completely absent in most of specimens. But, for a 15 year old child with a passion in insects,I have to say that it was an unforgetable experience. I was feeling like I was the happiest person in the world,having obtained for the first time tropical impressive insects which,until then,I was dreaming from my entomological books since the age of 5.. Now it's completely different, I(like all of you) have the internet and can get easily (when I have the money of course,not all times) rare foreign specimens(the ones of my country I collect all myself in nature) of great quality and at much more reasonable prices(in relation to their rarity) than Deyrolle's. Imagine how much would cost a female Charaxes fournierae(for example) at this maison, when I gave in 1998 6000 French Franks to buy from them a repaired pair of Ornithoptera goliath supremus..(Ok,I was a child then,and fortunately with very very good parents.. ).
Also,some wrong identifications in Deyrolle's specimens,like : female of Ascalapha odorata labeled as Erebus odora, female Ornithoptera tithonus labeled as O.goliath,etc.

Thanos

[Deleted]

I was feeling like I was the happiest person in the world,having obtained for the first time tropical impressive insects

it was exactly the same for me when a man opened up an entomological store on our local market for a couple of years, I was 13 and my mum let me save up my pocket money and took me every 3 months, up to this point I had only seen common British stuff from around my area but the thrill of buying common birdwings like priamus and brookina, morphos and big colourful common swallowtsails made me sick with exitement, I didnt sleep the night before, it was better than christmas.

[thanos]

'I didnt sleep the night before, it was better than christmas'

As Clark says, 'yeeeah baby' .. !


Thanos