Working in NHM collection (5)
17-09-2010 19:43
It is thrlling to have
the opportunity to work directly with historic types.
I handled during these days many specimens that have
gone through the hands of well-known conchologists.
They left their signs through their handwriting (more
in a following post) and above all used their
creativity to give a name to a species.
The Cuming collection has inspired some well-known conchologists to work on specimens which had been collected by Hugh Cuming and his collectors. However, there is one other collection that is of special interest to Neotropical malacologists, and that is the collection of Alcide d’Orbigny. He travelled extensively through South America in the early 19th century, and most of his material is now in London. His descriptions of both the species and the localities where he found them, are detailed and accurate enough that is has been possible to pinpoint many of them (see Breure, 1973). Moreover, his collection is a good example of the important biodiversity that was still extant at that time in South America, as several species have not been recorded afterwards.
Therefore, it is very interesting to try to match the specimens in his collection with the figured specimen in his beautifully “Voyages dans l’Amérique méridionale...”. Note that in the early 19th century, shells were often pictured with the aperture at the top, contrary to what has been accustomed in later times.
Reference:
Breure, A.S.H., 1973. Index to the Neotropical land Mollusca described by Alcide d’Orbigny, with notes on the localities of the mainland species. - Basteria 37: 113-135.
The Cuming collection has inspired some well-known conchologists to work on specimens which had been collected by Hugh Cuming and his collectors. However, there is one other collection that is of special interest to Neotropical malacologists, and that is the collection of Alcide d’Orbigny. He travelled extensively through South America in the early 19th century, and most of his material is now in London. His descriptions of both the species and the localities where he found them, are detailed and accurate enough that is has been possible to pinpoint many of them (see Breure, 1973). Moreover, his collection is a good example of the important biodiversity that was still extant at that time in South America, as several species have not been recorded afterwards.
Therefore, it is very interesting to try to match the specimens in his collection with the figured specimen in his beautifully “Voyages dans l’Amérique méridionale...”. Note that in the early 19th century, shells were often pictured with the aperture at the top, contrary to what has been accustomed in later times.
Reference:
Breure, A.S.H., 1973. Index to the Neotropical land Mollusca described by Alcide d’Orbigny, with notes on the localities of the mainland species. - Basteria 37: 113-135.