funding
You win some and you lose some?
03-06-2008 21:32
The fact that I haven't been publishing here, does
not mean that I have not been active with my snails.
Perhaps I was just too busy with them... ;-)
One of the topics with progress was the Peruvian Bostryx. I wrote before on the material of Weyrauch and, although his localities are usually rather precise, I feel a bit stuck on the Rio Rimac valley material, by lack of adequate collecting data. Not only is it important to have precise localities (in this case very precise), I would recommend every collector to make additional field notes on habitat (occurrence on vertical or horizontal faces*) and other ecological data. Since all possible notes have been destroyed after his death by his ignorant spouse, we will never know where Weyrauch collected some of his material and in which habitats.
On the contrary, e.g. are the very adequate data supplied by Fred Thompson. During all his collecting trips he made extensive notes on habitats, soils and circumstances. I used some of them in a paper on enigmatic species (to be published) and in forthcoming papers on Venezuela and Hispaniola.
That being the positive side on the coin, there is also some negative news. My applications for the Synthesys programma, viz. to study type material in London, Berlin and Stockholm, have all been rejected. While decision making was separate for each museum, they have in common that it has been a nearly complete 'black box'. In London there were nearly 200 applications, which made competition stiff. The Berlin committee argued that my last publication was in the 1980s, simply ignoring my recent Zootaxa paper... Perhaps I have been just too long "out" to be able to do relevant research?
One of the topics with progress was the Peruvian Bostryx. I wrote before on the material of Weyrauch and, although his localities are usually rather precise, I feel a bit stuck on the Rio Rimac valley material, by lack of adequate collecting data. Not only is it important to have precise localities (in this case very precise), I would recommend every collector to make additional field notes on habitat (occurrence on vertical or horizontal faces*) and other ecological data. Since all possible notes have been destroyed after his death by his ignorant spouse, we will never know where Weyrauch collected some of his material and in which habitats.
On the contrary, e.g. are the very adequate data supplied by Fred Thompson. During all his collecting trips he made extensive notes on habitats, soils and circumstances. I used some of them in a paper on enigmatic species (to be published) and in forthcoming papers on Venezuela and Hispaniola.
That being the positive side on the coin, there is also some negative news. My applications for the Synthesys programma, viz. to study type material in London, Berlin and Stockholm, have all been rejected. While decision making was separate for each museum, they have in common that it has been a nearly complete 'black box'. In London there were nearly 200 applications, which made competition stiff. The Berlin committee argued that my last publication was in the 1980s, simply ignoring my recent Zootaxa paper... Perhaps I have been just too long "out" to be able to do relevant research?
Synthesys
11-01-2008 19:33
Synthesys is a EU-funded programme aimed at
strengthening the infrastructure and research in
natural sciences (among which taxonomy). There are 20
natural history museums and botanical gardens
participating in this programme, that runs till
Spring next year.
Untill recently I was unaware of it, but I realized that it could be a perfect chance to revisit the Natural History Museum (BMNH) in London, and to visit the Berlin museum. Both are participants and act as Taxonomic Access Facilities, providing facilities for research.
As both are important depositories of type material for the Orthalicoidea (see here), it is worth trying to seize the chance. While funding possibilities have definitely decreased over the past decades, it is a very commendable initiative of the EU.
Let's hope for the best.
Untill recently I was unaware of it, but I realized that it could be a perfect chance to revisit the Natural History Museum (BMNH) in London, and to visit the Berlin museum. Both are participants and act as Taxonomic Access Facilities, providing facilities for research.
As both are important depositories of type material for the Orthalicoidea (see here), it is worth trying to seize the chance. While funding possibilities have definitely decreased over the past decades, it is a very commendable initiative of the EU.
Let's hope for the best.