New digital images of the butterfly and moth collections of Carl Linnaeus launched online for National Insect Week

The collection is of special scientific importance, containing many type specimens of species named by Linnaeus. Each specimen is digitally imaged by specialists at London’s Natural History Museum, resulting in images of superb quality.  The images can be viewed in close detail on the internet using the integrated FSI (Flash based single source image viewer). Access to the system is through the Linnean Society website and can be found at www.linnean.org under ‘Linnaean Collections Online’.

A distinguished scientist and doctor, Carl Linnaeus developed the binominal naming system of plants and animals that we are all familiar with today and which provides the fundamental framework for knowledge of the biota of the Earth, supporting effective conservation measures and the sustainable use of biodiversity.  By the time of his death in 1778, Linnaeus had named some 300 sorts of butterfly, of which over 240 still bear their Linnaean species names today.  Many of the best known, most intensively studied and most important species were christened by him.  Below are some examples of Linnaeus' "top" butterfly and moth species.

• The American Monarch (Danaus plexippus (L.))  Perhaps the best known butterfly in the world, the remarkable annual migration of almost countless millions of Monarchs have inspired wonder and awe, as well as bringing innumerable new insights into the ecology and physiology of this remarkable insect. 

• The Large White (Pieris brassicae (L.))  Bane of the cabbage grower, this species has nonetheless proved very useful for all manner of biochemical, physiological, ecological and behavioural investigations.

• The Painted Lady (Vanessa cardui (L.))  One of the most beautiful of the common butterflies, this species is intriguing because of its incredible geographic range and remarkable ability to disperse.

• The Green Hairstreak (Callophrys rubi (L.))  A master of camouflage, studies of the coloration of this species have contributed to an explosion of interest in the biophysics of photonic structures.

• The Paris Peacock (Papilio paris (L.))  One of the most stunningly beautiful of all butterflies, this species gives a perfect example of how their colour patterns are built up from individual scales, like a mosaic.

• The Wood Tiger Moth (Parasemia plantaginis (L.))  Resident in the UK in localised areas, in recent decades this moth, which often flies by day, has become scarcer.

The Society is guardian of the priceless collections of specimens, manuscripts and letters of Carl Linnaeus and is creating a digital archive of over 12 Terabytes of unique material relating to its historic collections, enabling full global access. Inspection of the collections for research purposes has only previously been possible to those who are able to travel to the Society’s rooms in London, where they are stored. 

Also launched are the first of the digitised insect specimens from the collection of the Society’s founder and first President, Sir James Edward Smith (1759–1828). The Society expects to complete the second phase of this project towards the end of the year, making an important but relatively unexplored early 19th century collection accessible online for research purposes. Altogether, 3,400 specimens have been digitally imaged resulting in over 10,000 images of superb quality.

The President of the Linnean Society, Professor David Cutler says that “the Society’s digital archive project is particularly important because it provides access to these unique collections to those working in taxonomy in developing countries, and distant parts of the world who might not otherwise be able to see them. The image quality is such that few will need to handle the priceless specimens to obtain the information they seek”.

The supporting descriptive data, prepared by Dr Mike Fitton of London’s Natural History Museum and Honorary Curator of the Society’s Linnaean Insect Collections, has been integrated into the Society’s Repository, developed and hosted by the University of London Computer Centre (ULCC). The realisation of this project has been made possible by the generous funding from Arcadia (formerly the Lisbet Rausing Charitable Fund), and from the Society’s own resources.

The 14,300 Linnean plant specimens were successfully launched online in 2007 and have already been accessed from over 42 countries worldwide, providing a key resource for taxonomic research.  The Linnaean Correspondence of over 4,000 letters from 600 correspondents is also now available for historical research.

For more information and photos or to arrange interviews, please contact Elaine Shaughnessy, Head of Development, Linnean Society of London or Kate Longhurst, Communications Manager on 020 7434 4479.   www.linnean.org

Notes for Editors:

The Linnean Society of London is the world’s oldest active biological society. Founded in 1788, the Society takes its name from the great Swedish naturalist, Carl Linnaeus (1707-1778) who developed the system of binominal nomenclature. This system today provides the fundamental framework for knowledge of the biota of the Earth, supporting effective conservation measures and the sustainable use of biodiversity. The Society is the custodian of Linnaeus’ original library and collections and is creating a digital archive, enabling full global access. It encourages and communicates scientific advances through its three world-class journals, open meetings and website. The Society’s Fellowship is international and its Fellows are drawn from all walks of life including professional scientists and amateur naturalists. The Society welcomes anyone interested in natural history, in all its forms. www.linnean.org

University of London Computer Centre (ULCC) is an IT solutions provider (offering IT infrastructure, web development, desktop support, e-learning, digital preservation and hosting) to academic and public sector organisations throughout the UK. ULCC is a central activity of the University of London and provides information technology services to the other central activities. For more information about ULCC, visit www.ulcc.ac.uk

Selected by Time Out in 2007 as one of the Seven Wonders of London, the Natural History Museum is also a world-leading science research centre. Through its collections and scientific expertise, the Museum is helping to conserve the extraordinary richness and diversity of the natural world with groundbreaking projects in 68 countries. The Museum has been generating knowledge about the natural world for over 250 years and is known worldwide as a leader in scientific research. The Natural History Museum collections originated in the Sloane collections from the 17th and 18th centuries, and today have grown to over 70 million plants, animals, fossils, rocks and minerals from round the world. Behind the scenes, more than 300 scientists and students use the collections in research into problems such as disease, climate change and threats to the Earth's biodiversity. www.nhm.ac.uk.

Picture

Brimstone Butterfly (Papilio rhamni L.) This species may be the origin of the English word butterfly, as the “the butter-coloured fly of spring”.

© Linnean Society of London

For a full selection of images click here