Chinanews.com, Taiyuan, October 31st. Title: Professor Shanxi’s collection of insect specimens for 40 years: Specimens are valuable and scientific research is priceless
Author Gao Ruifeng
"Insects cannot be simply divided into "beneficial insects" and "pests." Professor Cao Tianwen from the School of Plant Protection of Shanxi Agricultural University has collected insect specimens for nearly 40 years. He said that at different stages and environments, benefits and harms are different.
For example, butterflies feed on plant leaves in the larval stage, which are pests; they can spread pollen as adults, which is beneficial.
Cao Tianwen has organized more than 350 popular science exhibitions across the country.
Photo by Wei Liang
Since becoming obsessed with butterflies in 1981, from collecting butterfly specimens to collecting various insect specimens, from hobby to scientific research, Cao Tianwen has collected more than 100,000 insect specimens and more than 4,000 species in the past 40 years.
Among them, nearly half are butterfly specimens and more than 2,000 species.
He donated most of the specimens to schools, including some expensive specimens on the market. He said, "Specimen are valuable, but scientific research is priceless."
Devil's giant pole insect-the giant bamboo branch insect in South Asia, the largest butterfly-the bird winged bird butterfly, the largest dung shell man-the crown-headed giant dung beetle... Cao Tianwen, born in 1961, studied insects in the Department of Biology of Shanxi University. After visiting the insect specimen exhibition of university teachers, I became fascinated by butterflies in my second year of university, and then plunged into the insect world.
Every summer vacation, Cao Tianwen goes out to collect specimens at his own expense, and he travels all over China.
"Except for Tibet, I have basically traveled all over the country." He said that the first time he went out to collect specimens was the most memorable.
"Riding a bicycle, starting from Niangziguan, passing Beidaihe, Shanhaiguan, Badaling... to Yanmenguan, making a circle. It took 50 yuan a month and collected more than 100 insect specimens."
"The crown-headed giant dung beetle was collected in Xishuangbanna. This was an accidental discovery." Cao Tianwen said that the crown-headed giant dung beetle was mainly distributed in Southeast Asia. "When it was collected, it was rolling a dung ball. I was curious at the time, this dung ball. Why is it twice the size of the dung ball rolled by the ordinary dung sheller? I took the collecting tool and buckled it out and found that it was a giant crown-headed dung beetle.
When it comes to the "bird-winged phoenix" specimen, Cao Tianwen is quite proud.
In the 1990s, when he participated in an academic exchange, he used the "Red Bead Parnassius" collected in Mount Wutai in exchange for "Birdwing Papilio" with foreign counterparts. He smiled and said, "Now it seems to be taking advantage. Butterflies are now protected internationally.
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During an expedition in Lishan, Shanxi, Cao Tianwen discovered the Great Purple Admiral Butterfly (Japanese "national butterfly", mainly distributed in Shaanxi, Henan, Hubei, Zhejiang and other places in China). The host is a native hackberry in Lishan. The leaves of the hackberry are eaten, and the villagers cut the branches to feed the livestock.
Cao Tianwen persuaded the villagers to plant hackberry trees to breed butterflies, "making them into specimens or handicrafts for sale, the prices are much higher."
Cao Tianwen collected more than 100,000 insect specimens and more than 4,000 species.
Among them, nearly half are butterfly specimens and more than 2,000 species.
Photo by Wei Liang
In addition to collecting specimens and scientific research, since 1990, Cao Tianwen has organized more than 350 popular science exhibitions in more than 10 provinces (autonomous regions and municipalities) including Shanxi, Liaoning, Shandong, Beijing, and Inner Mongolia.
Its scientific research team established the Shanxi Insect Herbarium.
In 2020, Cao Tianwen and Taiyuan Botanical Garden will cooperate with the "Cao Tianwen Insect Specimen Museum", which will be open to the public.
He said that holding popular science exhibitions and building a herbarium will allow more people to appreciate the mystery of the insect world, especially for children. Each specimen is a story about insects, thus arousing children’s interest in nature exploration and inspiring Their love of nature.
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