Hidden Biodiversity: Exploring Neotropical Fungus Weevils With the Help of BHL

Hidden Biodiversity: Exploring Neotropical Fungus Weevils With the Help of BHL

This post was originally featured on the
Biodiversity Heritage Library blog
.
A view of the Panamanian tropical rainforest in Colón Province. Photo by Samanta Orellana.
In the last decades of the 19th century, a monumental publication on the biodiversity of Mexico and Central America began publication—
Biologia Centrali-Americana
. Published in 215 parts from 1879 to 1915 by the editors Frederick DuCane Godman and Osbert Salvin, the work describes over 50,000 species and is illustrated with over 1,600 lithographic plates depicting over 18,000 species. Remarkable for its time, the title is still vitally important for the study of Neotropical biodiversity today, as it contained virtually all known information at the time about Mexican and Central American flora and fauna.
Biologia Centrali-Americana
is a particularly important resource for entomologist Samanta Orellana, a
PhD student
in evolutionary biology at the
Dr. Nico Franz
Lab of Arizona State University (ASU) and a research assistant in the ASU Biocollections of the
Biodiversity Knowledge Integration Center
. Orellana began studying insects and working with entomological collections more than a decade ago, during her undergraduate studies in her home country of Guatemala.
“For many insect groups in Guatemala and the rest of Central America,
Biologia Centrali-Americana
still represents the only source of information available for the region,” states Orellana.
Samanta Orellana in the Arizona State University Biocollections. Photo by Kevin Cortés.
Biologia Centrali-Americana
is also meaningful to Orellana because it led her to the
Biodiversity Heritage Library (BHL)
. In 2010, whilst identifying Guatemalan insects as part of her undergraduate studies, Orellana started using the “
Electronic
Biologia Centrali-Americana
,” available from the Smithsonian Libraries and Archives, which
directed her to BHL
. She hasn’t stopped using BHL since.
“BHL is simply wonderful,” lauds Orellana. “I think it is an amazing tool for entomologists all around the world, especially for those of us who work or have worked in collections in developing countries, usually without access to specialized libraries or journals, but with a lot of material to identify.”
One of the plates of Central American anthribids
, included in the chapter written by Karl Jordan in the
Biologia Centrali-Americana
(
Insecta. Coleoptera. v.4, pt.6, 1895-1907
). Contributed in BHL from Smithsonian Libraries and Archives.
Orellana specializes in the family Anthribidae (Coleoptera), commonly known as fungus weevils. Her research on these insects began during her studies at the Universidad de Panamá, where she completed an M.Sc. in entomology, and continues through her PhD work, with her dissertation focused on the family’s diversity and evolution. As part of this research, Orellana recently
published a catalogue
of the Anthribidae species from Panama.
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