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Drs. Rob de Vos
  Drs. Rob de Vos, Amsterdam,
hat sich auf die orientalische Arctiidaespezialisiert und arbeitet seit 1988 an einer Revision von Nyctmerini (Arctiinae)..Während zweier Forschungsaufenthalte im Museum hat er den gesamten Materialbestand dieser Gruppe (Nyctemerini) durchgearbeitet und die Sammlung von Grund auf revidiert.

Date of birth: 12th December 1960, born in Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
I was interested in nature, in Lepidoptera in particular, already at the age of ten. I collected, like everybody in our profession, butterflies and moths (later on also micromoths) in my neighbourhood and on holidays, and I still do. When I finished highschool in 1982, I started with my study of Biology at the University of Amsterdam, and I graduated in1987. Since 1988 I am working at a revision of the genus Nyctemera (Lepidoptera: Arctiidae) and related genera from southeast Asia. Now, after 15 years of study and 7 publications, the complexity begins to unravel and the revision of this genus is in full progress. About 300 taxa are in this revision reduced to about 60 Southeast Asian species. For this I visited many musea and collections or receive collections to identify. I also made three collecting expeditions,in 1993, 1996 and 2005, to Papua Indonesia and I am planning a next trip in 2007. During the last trip in 2005 we had a wonderful cooperation with Br. Henk van Mastrigt from Jayapura (specialist in Delias butterflies) and with the biology students from the University of Cenderawasih (UNCEN) in Papua. Together with other entomologists we founded the Papua Insects Foundation (PIF). The PIF has the ambition, in cooperation with the students in Papua and entomologists world wide, to do research at the insect fauna of Papua Indonesia to be able to recognize important and vulnerable areas of high biodiversity (hot spots). These so called biodiversity "hot spots" are in very high need of protection. By this way we hope to participate in the protection of the rainforests. Well known organisations like World Wildlife Fund and Conservation International already endeavour for protection of the tropical forests worldwide, but they are mainly focused on larger animals. The Papua Insects Foundation wants to provide these and other organisations with information on areas of endemism, biodiversity hot spots and faunistic and taxonomic information concerning the insects of Papua, to be stronger in the struggle for the protection of the rainforests in Papua. We encourage and support local universities and biology students to participate in inventory and other research projects on insects. Visit our website (www.papua-insects.nl) to find more details.

Meanwhile I am working as a preparator of insects at the ZoologicalMuseum of Amsterdam. Apart of being specialized on Nyctemera's and other Arctiidae, I am coordinator of the Dutch Migratory Lepidoptera Registration, which celebrated its 65th birthday in 2005! Furthermore I coordinate a national project (Workgroup Lepidoptera Faunistics) in The Netherlands to make an inventory of the Dutch Macrolepidoptera, which should result in a digital distribution atlas (www.vlindernet.nl). Together with four other lepidopterists, I founded in 1998 the section "Ter Haar" of the Dutch Entomological Society, which is specialized in Macrolepidoptera (Heterocera) and of which I was secretary for seven years. Apart from the publications on Nyctemera's, my main publications are "Manual for spotting and reporting Dutch Migratory Lepidoptera" (1992), "Annotated Checklist of the Dutch Lepidoptera" (together with Joop H. KUCHLEIN, 1999) and the annual reports of the Migratory Lepidoptera Registration. At this moment I am orientating on other oriental Arctiid groups in order to make a digital review of all Arctiidae from Papua Indonesia on www.papua-insects.nl. At Dutch level, I will be very busy with the digital distribution atlas.

Drs. Rob DE VOS
Zoological Museum of Amsterdam, dept. of Entomology
Plantage Middenlaan 64
NL-1018 DH Amsterdam
The Netherlands
email: rvos@science.uva.nl
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