Museum visit to the Natural History Museum in London, UK (22–26 February 2010)
Funded by U.S. National Science Foundation REVSYS grant (DEB-0919333, local link, NSF link).
Torsten Dikow visited the Natural History Museum (BMNH) in order to study and photograph 48 holotypes of Mydidae, 3 holotypes of Apioceridae, as well as 13 holotypes of Bathypogoninae and Phellinae (Asilidae) important for the REVSYS project. In addition, many other specimens were studied and entered into the specimen database in order to provide a better visualization of the wold-wide distribution of Mydidae in particular. Several type specimens of unpublished manuscript names originally identified by John Bowden were studied as well and the specimens borrowed in order to make these species available to the scientific community.
The new facilities in the Darwin Centre 2 at the BMNH (see below) offer great storage facilities for the very important Diptera collection as well as a wonderful exhibit for educating the public about the use of museum collections and the importance of taxonomic and systematic research.
The beautiful main building of the Natural History Museum.
The Darwin Centre 2 with the Cocoon collection and exhibition space at the Natural History Museum.
The Cocoon inside the Darwin Centre 2 at the Natural History Museum.
The Cocoon inside the Darwin Centre 2 as part of an exhibition about collections-based research at the Natural History Museum.
Buprestidae beetles and Proteaceae flower as part of the exhibition in the Cocoon inside the Darwin Centre 2 at the Natural History Museum.