Emtomologists?

PeglegOS · Post by **PeglegOS** » Sun Sep 10, 2006 6:31 am

Are you guys Emtomologists? Or is it just the fact that insects are fun to take macros of? I've also noticed, you guys know the names of these critters...

gpmatthews · Post by **gpmatthews** » Sun Sep 10, 2006 6:42 am

... we just think its polite to use ther names!

DaveW · Post by **DaveW** » Sun Sep 10, 2006 9:08 am

The Latin name is the same in any language, the local name is not always the same. An American "bluebell" is not the same as a British "bluebell". Latin is the Esperanto of botany and zoology!

You can also search the web to get your subjects Latin names if you know their local common name.

DaveW

Ken Ramos · Post by **Ken Ramos** » Sun Sep 10, 2006 7:01 pm

I for one knew little about insects. However through these forums and having taken up macro photography myself, I have learned a great deal from those here who are "in the know," so to speak on insects. By photographing them and researching them to learn their identity, we develop and retain the knowledge of our efforts and thus learn a great deal by ourselves and with the help of our other members here. From reading some of these posts, I would venture to say that there are those who have a keen interest in the world of insects and some who have a keen interest in just one particular species. Of course there are others whose interests lie mainly in the photographic techniques used to capture them, the insects that is. So, I guess you could say that we are a mixed bag of professionals and amateurs, the latter having those who are advanced amateurs and then there are those, like myself, who are novices. Did I make sense?

Oh well, I am just an old man rattling around in here anyway.

PeglegOS · Post by **PeglegOS** » Sun Sep 10, 2006 7:15 pm

You rattle well, wee grasshopper....

Mike B in OKlahoma · Post by **Mike B in OKlahoma** » Sun Sep 10, 2006 7:35 pm

I've never even had a college-level biology course, let alone being an entomologist, but I've been interested in wildlife in general and insects in particular since I was a geeky seven-year old, and some of the stuff I've been exposed to stuck with me!

rjlittlefield · Post by **rjlittlefield** » Sun Sep 10, 2006 7:48 pm

PeglegOS wrote:Are you guys Emtomologists? Or is it just the fact that insects are fun to take macros of? I've also noticed, you guys know the names of these critters...

I don't know of any professional entomologists in our ranks. But some of us have friends who are, and several frequent posters have obviously spent many happy hours studying the little beasts.

Aside from that, yeah, insects are fun to take pictures of. Compared to plants (it seems to me), the little animals tend to have more detail at all scales that you can photograph, where plants tend to go kind of smooth and shiny when you get close.

As for names, well, they're handles for getting more information, and as DaveW points out, the Latin names are better for that than the common names are.

--Rik

DaveW · Post by **DaveW** » Sun Sep 10, 2006 11:44 pm

The thing is many known creatures or plants simply don't have common names, only Latin ones. People don't know what you mean if you say it's a cactus from the south of S. America with purple flowers, but if you tell them it's Notocactus purpureus it is internationally known. What does the Latin name Notocactus purpureus mean? Er well, the "purple southern cactus"!!!

DaveW

MacroLuv · Post by **MacroLuv** » Mon Sep 11, 2006 2:22 am

I often try to find an english name for subjects at first and then a latin if lucky. And I appreciate any help in getting correct ID from folks around here.

Sometimes I even don't know local (croatian) name.

DaveW · Post by **DaveW** » Mon Sep 11, 2006 4:58 am

This is where books come in handy, you really need an elementary book on the flora as well as insects of your country and start from there.

Sometimes you can find a web site that does this, but not always. As you imply you often need the common name to look it up on the web. But it depends what you put into your search engine. I have just put "Flora of Croatia" into Google and come up with a few pages of links, for instance:-

http://public.carnet.hr/botanic/cisb/Ed ... /flora.htm

I put in "Croatian Insects" and got:-

http://www.hbd1885.hr/insects.htm

Also this set of links:-

http://species.enviroweb.org/countries/ooohr.html

I just ask my search engine a question when I want to find something, it's surprising how often it gives a link to the answer!

DaveW

MacroLuv · Post by **MacroLuv** » Mon Sep 11, 2006 10:01 am

Thanks a lot Dave! I wonder how was living possible before Google era?

Mike B in OKlahoma · Post by **Mike B in OKlahoma** » Mon Sep 11, 2006 10:31 am

I was 35 before I ever got on the internet, and I can't imagine how I lived without the net, let alone google.

DaveW · Post by **DaveW** » Mon Sep 11, 2006 11:15 am

I was in my late 50's, so at 35 you were brought up with it! I thought the way things were going then I better get used to using it as I would need it to draw my pension. Not far wrong as you have to put a PIN number in to draw everything now!

DaveW

Emtomologists?

Emtomologists?

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