Thanks to my own expeditions and the donations of many colleagues, I am building a consistent collection of Cerambycidae and Oedemeridae for molecular studies.
Those samples represent an invaluable source for scientific research and in the future they may be invaluable to document vanishing biodiversity.
Contributing with samples: If you collect beetles during field trips, please consider donating some to science! Specimens of all species (even very common ones) and from all geographic locations are welcome, as they all tell a different story. The best way of preserving the specimens is collecting them directly in ethanol 96° or freeze them immediatly, but if you don’t have ethanol or you cannot take the specimen alive in the lab, just drying the specimen in a pierced tube is enough. DNA’s first enemy is humidity and temperature variations, so keeping the samples dry and cold is very important.
If you collect samples in a country or area where restrictions to collecting are applied, please include a permit number or a clearence document.
Of course, you will be acknowledged in case your samples are used for research.
Loans: if you need Cerambycidae or Oedemeridae for research purposes, please contact me: riccardo.poloni[ at ]gmail.com
Riccardo Poloni | insect evolution and ecology 