JULY 2019 EDITION: ABN 2019 - 4 AFRICAN (MAY AND JUNE 2019) THE LEPIDOPTERISTS’ BUTTERFLY SOCIETY OF AFRICA NEWS LATEST NEWS Welcome to July’s newsletter! Winter has arrived on the Highveld and not much is flying at the moment. This may be a positive development, as last season there appeared to be little variation in butterfly numbers between the winter and summer months. KwaZulu-Natal was good in May, but numbers seem to be tailing off now. A reminder that this year’s LepSoc Africa Conference will be held in Knysna on Sat 16 and Sun 17 November. Please contact Dave Edge ([email protected]) to confirm your attendance. In addition to the Conference, Mon 18 Nov has been set aside as a public day, where we intend to search for the Brenton Blue (Orachrysops niobe); the Brenton Blue Trust have put up a R20 000 reward, payable to the first person who rediscovers this critically endangered butterfly. Orachrysops niobe Subject to demand, LSA intend to host a two-day field trip to the Steve Woodhall Kammannassie, camping at Mannetjiesberg on the night of Fri 15 November. Corrections Steve Collins picked up a couple of errors in March’s newsletter: • Dave Richard’s photo of a Charaxes from Rwanda is Charaxes alticola, which I’d misidentified as Charaxes ansorgei ruandana. • The first butterfly in the Butterfly Identification plate (Heteropsis) was titled Heteropsis exocellata, but it is in fact a dry-season Heteropsis pauper. 1 Storage of Lepidoptera collections (Jeremy Dobson) There is an urgent need for LepSoc Africa to find a storage facility for lepidoptera specimens. There are a number of private collections for which there is currently no succession plan and this situation is only going to get worse. The material in private collections includes representatives of butterflies that will, in all probability, never be seen in the wild again, such as Trimenia malagrida malagrida, Lepidochrysops methymna dicksoni and Stygionympha dicksoni. Apart from these possibly extinct butterflies, the collections represent a huge amount of time and effort and the data contained within them has immense scientific value. The collections are - in general - not wanted by our national museums and in any case, the future curatorship at some of our museums is far from secure. As I see it, there are two scenarios we could strive for: 1. The basic, minimum requirement would be to obtain a 1 17 33 49 65 81 97 105 2 18 34 50 66 82 98 106 3 19 35 51 67 83 99 107 warehouse-type building for storage of specimens and appoint a 4 20 36 52 68 84 100 108 5 21 37 53 69 85 101 109 6 22 38 54 70 86 102 110 permanent manager / curator, whose job description would 7 23 39 55 71 87 103 111 8 24 40 56 72 88 104 112 include looking after the specimens, sorting and cataloguing the 9 25 41 57 73 89 10 26 42 58 74 90 11 27 43 59 75 91 collection and coordinating visits by researchers. The facility 12 28 44 60 76 92 13 29 45 61 77 93 OFFICE 14 30 46 62 78 94 could be open for public viewing, but this would increase the 15 31 47 63 79 95 16 32 48 64 80 96 cost. A minimum specification for the building would be Floor Plan – Option 1 approximately 500 m2 of industrial storage space (enough to contain about 1 million specimens), with an office component for deliveries and sorting and a study and toilet. I’d guess a suitable facility could be purchased (or built) for about R5 million or rented for about R50 000 per month. Rates, services and a salary for the curator could add a further R50 000 per month. 2. At the other extreme (and a dream that I would support), we could look at constructing a large facility in say, Midrand or Cape Town, to create a national Butterfly Centre. The ABRI collection could possibly be purchased and with this and other collections, we would hold the largest and most comprehensive collection of African lepidoptera anywhere in the world. In addition to the storage 1 17 33 49 65 81 97 113 129 145 161 177 193 209 225 241 257 273 289 297 305 313 321 2 18 34 50 66 82 98 114 130 146 162 178 194 210 226 242 258 274 290 298 306 314 322 3 19 35 51 67 83 99 115 131 147 163 179 195 211 227 243 259 275 291 299 307 315 323 4 20 36 52 68 84 100 116 132 148 164 180 196 212 228 244 260 276 292 300 308 316 324 component (say 1 500 5 21 37 53 69 85 101 117 133 149 165 181 197 213 229 245 261 277 293 301 309 317 325 6 22 38 54 70 86 102 118 134 150 166 182 198 214 230 246 262 278 294 302 310 318 326 2 7 23 39 55 71 87 103 119 135 151 167 183 199 215 231 247 263 279 295 303 311 319 327 m ), the Centre could 8 24 40 56 72 88 104 120 136 152 168 184 200 216 232 248 264 280 296 304 312 320 328 9 25 41 57 73 89 105 121 137 153 169 185 201 217 233 249 265 281 have a public display 10 26 42 58 74 90 106 122 138 154 170 186 202 218 234 250 266 282 11 27 43 59 75 91 107 123 139 155 171 187 203 219 235 251 267 283 12 28 44 60 76 92 108 124 140 156 172 188 204 220 236 252 268 284 area, a bookshop, a 13 29 45 61 77 93 109 125 141 157 173 189 205 221 237 253 269 285 OFFICE BOOKSHOP 14 30 46 62 78 94 110 126 142 158 174 190 206 222 238 254 270 286 15 31 47 63 79 95 111 127 143 159 175 191 207 223 239 255 271 287 photographic gallery and 16 32 48 64 80 96 112 128 144 160 176 192 208 224 240 256 272 288 possibly a butterfly flight- house and a restaurant. FLIGHT HOUSE MUSEUM RESTAURANT AND TOILETS The cost of such a facility (including the purchase of the ABRI collection) could Floor Plan – Option 2 easily exceed R35 million and the running costs, depending on what was included, could surpass R150 000 per month. Some money could possibly be recovered by donations and entry-fees, but it would require a massive commitment by any investor. 2 Who would be interested in funding such a facility and why? Apart from the major importance of this development to African natural-history, an investor would receive full naming rights (the Smithsonian institute springs to mind) and I believe a Butterfly Centre (either the large or small version) would rapidly become well known internationally, both among specialist lepidoptera researchers and the general nature-loving public. Nothing like this exists on the African continent, which contains the second largest diversity of butterflies on earth, behind only the Amazonian rainforest. I appeal to all members of LepSoc Africa to think carefully about this pressing issue and to get back to me with any ideas or suggestions. Highveld Branch Meeting André Coetzer hosted a meeting of the Highveld Butterfly Club (Gauteng, Free State and North West provinces) on 30 April 2019. André has also initiated a WhatsApp Group for HBC members. Butterfly Evening Hermann Staude hosted a Butterfly Evening at Ruimsig Country Club on 8 May 2019. KZN Field Trip The KwaZulu-Natal branch of LepSoc Africa organised a camping trip to Harold Johnson Nature Reserve in June. The event was well supported and 63 species of butterfly were found. Fourth Afrotropical Lepidoptera Workshop Planning is underway for the next expedition, which will be held in Gabon in November 2020. A First Notification and Registration Form has been circulated: First Notification Registration Form All available places for the Workshop have already been taken, but if you are interested in the expedition and haven’t yet submitted an entry form, please do so: it is likely that one or two people currently on the list won’t be able to make it. Entries will be treated on a first come – first served basis. The relatively high costs reflect the degree of uncertainty regarding the expedition; this is not a commercial undertaking – once costs have been finalized, individual packages will be adjusted accordingly. 3 Costs will have been finalized and research permits acquired before deposits are called for in July next year. Highveld Butterfly Club trips André Coetzer arranged a visit to Walter Sisulu Botanical Gardens (WSBG) in May. The group recorded 25-species: Abundance Index 3.0 (Average). An interesting record was the White Pie (Tuxentius calice), which I believe is the first time this species has been recorded from WSBG. Lourens Erasmus led a group on a visit to King’s Kloof in the Muldersdrift area. 28 species were found (3.4 – Average) - a very unusual record was the African Savanna Grass Yellow (Eurema hecabe solifera). Afrogegenes letterstedti Belenois creona severina Deudorix antalus Junonia hierta cebrene (Lourens Erasmus) (Lourens Erasmus) (Lourens Erasmus) (Lourens Erasmus) WSBG, Gauteng WSBG, Gauteng WSBG, Gauteng WSBG, Gauteng Eurema (Terias) hecabe solifera Tuxentius melaena melaena (left) and Tuxentius calice (right), indicating the spot (Lourens Erasmus) that you can use to distinguish between the two species Muldersdrift, Gauteng (Andre Coetzer) 4 LepSoc Africa Transcribing Project As noted in May’s newsletter, the members of LepSoc Africa hold a considerable amount of original letters, notes and other memorabilia, related to African lepidoptera and African lepidopterists.