The ‘immaculate’ collection
John Walters and I have been assembling this collection for the last few years. Our aim has been to have a single typical specimen of each of the species on the British list, carded as neatly and symmetrically as possible. In a few cases, the collection contains more than one specimen, to illustrate colour variation or sexual dimorphism. We’d still like to fill a few more of the gaps (please help if you can!) but before too much longer it will be time to photograph all these specimens.
This collection has been laid out by printing drawer liners on an A3 printer. If you’re interested in setting out a carabid collection in the way I have done it here, let me know and I can send you the Microsoft® Word file. It can be adapted to give more or less room for each species and to fit into different size drawers or store-boxes.
Many people have helped us to assemble this collection either by donating or exchanging specimens, or by taking us to see certain species. Our thanks go to (in no particular order) John Read, Richard Jones, Brian Eversham, Pavel Saska, Mark Hancock, Martin Luff, Andy Schofield, Martin Rejzek, Roy Anderson, Richard Lyszkowski, John Paul, Peter Hammond, Peter Harvey, Andrew Graham, Paolo Neri, Sindre Ligaard, Dave Boyce, Tony Allen, Steven MacCormick, Julia Carey, Andy McVeigh, Peter Hodge, Jonty Denton, Pete Kirby, Kevin Austin and Emma Small.
4 Responses “The ‘immaculate’ collection”
Hi Mark,
How about posting a list of missing species? There can’t be too many gaps now.
Andrew
Thanks Andrew,
I’ve added a link to the page listing the species we haven’t yet photographed alive.
Mark,
Just been drooling over your collection (again) and I am puzzled by the specimen below problematicus (third column, second from bottom); what is it?
Cheers, Dave Murray
Hi Dave, That is a Danish specimen of Carabus convexus. There are several British specimens from the early 1800s and I suspect this to be an extinct native species.