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About the collection
The Lepidoptera and Trichoptera department is part of the holometabolous collection of the Museum der Natur in Hamburg. It comprises the collection of butterflies and moths as well as the collection of caddisflies, two groups of flying insects that have a common ancestor from around 230 million years ago. The two orders form the Amphiesmenoptera. These "clothed" flying insects have either scales (butterflies and moths) or hairs (caddisflies) on their wings.
The staff of the section includes two technical assistants, six student assistants, two Bachelor students and one volunteer. The student assistants are mainly involved in organising the collections and digitising the specimens, including the images of 5,000 specimens from Thailand, which are provisionally stored in envelopes. Some of them are also helping to compile the catalogue of Trichoptera species. Our volunteer is helping to transcribe the labels.
Lepidoptera
We have around 1,100 species of lepidoptera stored in fireproof cabinets. The main collection consists of about 1,000,000 specimens of adult butterflies, which are dried, stapled and stored in about 4,500 entomological drawers, while the caterpillars are kept in alcohol in the wet collection. Most of the specimens come from Europe, Africa and Asia, but the collection also includes specimens from South America.
Trichoptera
The type species of Trichoptera comprises around 479 species, most of which were described by Georg Ülmer (1877-1963), and is one of the most important caddisfly collections in the world. At the beginning of the 20th century, the entomologist Georg Ülmer rose to become a globally recognised trichopterist. Despite his remarkable contributions, Ülmer's scientific findings stemmed primarily from his meticulous taxonomic desk work, which focussed on caddisflies. Due to his failing health, he did not take part in the bold collecting expeditions of his time, but stayed in his home town of Hamburg. Initially, he collected in the Eppendorf moor and other bodies of water and wetlands around Hamburg. Apart from a few collecting trips to southern and central Germany around 1900, he remained in northern Germany and the Hamburg area, where he specialised in aquatic insects. Nevertheless, his expertise found worldwide resonance through extensive correspondence with other Trichoptera specialists, and he published 128 papers on this group alone. He was regarded as the leading expert on caddisflies and also worked on many foreign collections in worldwide correspondence. Ülmer's original sketches are deposited in the Museum der Natur in Hamburg, as are letters to co-workers all over the world and his field notes.
The main collection of caddisflies includes both dried specimens and specimens preserved in alcohol as well as some of the slides.
Related collections
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Contact person
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Projects
There are currently no projects available
Publications
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2026/01
Phylogenetic analysis and taxonomic revision of the termitophilous rove beetle genus Xenogaster Wasmann, 1891 (Staphylinidae: Aleocharinae: Corotocini)
Zoological journal of the Linnean Society, 1, 206
2025/10
A New Actinote Hübner (Lepidoptera: Nymphalidae: Heliconiinae: Acraeini) from Northeastern Brazil
Neotropical Entomology, 1, 54
2025/07
Out of the darkness-a new genus of Paederinae from the Neotropics (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae) and its phylogenetic position
Zoological journal of the Linnean Society
2025/06
Illustrated catalogue of Pericopina (Lepidoptera, Erebidae, Arctiinae) in the Museum of Nature Hamburg – Zoology
Evolutionary Systematics, 1, 9
2025/06
Illustrated catalogue of Pericopina (Lepidoptera, Erebidae, Arctiinae) in the Museum of Nature Hamburg–Zoology
Evolutionary Systematics, 9
2024/02
Genome evolution and between-host transmission of Spiroplasma endosymbiont in wild communities of Morpho butterflies
bioRxiv
2021/11
Susceptibility monitoring and the molecular characterization of resistance of Spodoptera frugiperda (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) to lambda-cyhalothrin and chlorpyrifos
bioRxiv
2021/10
Supergene formation is associated with a major shift in genome-wide patterns of diversity in a butterfly
2021/09
Hidden in the wing dots: Disentangling mimetic sister species of butterflies (Riodinidae: Stalachtis) with an integrative approach
Zoologischer Anzeiger, 294
2021/02
Characterization of microsatellite loci for three species of Tomoplagia (Diptera: Tephritidae) and absence of cross-species amplification
Applied entomology and zoology, 1, 56
2013/05
Development and characterization of microsatellite loci for genetic studies of the sugarcane borer, Diatraea saccharalis (Lepidoptera: Crambidae)
Genetics and Molecular Research, 2, 12
2013/02
Using population genetic methods to identify the origin of an invasive population and to diagnose cryptic subspecies of Telchin licus (Lepidoptera: Castniidae)
Bulletin of Entomological Research, 1, 103
2010/00
Variabilidade genética de populações de Diatraea Saccharalis em cana-de-açúcar e milho
Anais
2010/00
Estruturação genética de populações de Heliothis virescens (Lepidoptera: Noctuide) inferida por marcadores microssatélites: bases para o manejo da resistência
Anais
2010/00
Como a variabilidade genética em Heliothis virescens (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) pode ser explicada pela expansão demográfica de suas populações
Anais
2007/02
Use of host plants by Troidini butterflies (Papilionidae, Papilioninae): constraints on host shift
Biological Journal of the Linnean Society, 2, 90
2006/04
Chemical and phylogenetic relationships among Aristolochia L.(Aristolochiaceae) from southeastern Brazil
Biochemical systematics and ecology, 4, 34
2005/05
Sesquiterpene and polyacetylene profile of the Bidens pilosa complex (Asteraceae: Heliantheae) from Southeast of Brazil
Biochemical Systematics and Ecology, 5, 33
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Employees
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Katarzyna Koszela
ztm Lepidoptera & TrichopteraPhone: +49 40 238317 603
E-mail: k.koszela@leibniz-lib.de/leibniz-lib.de/fileadmin/user_upload/home/Bilder/LIB/Ueber_das_LIB/Mitarbeitende/Hamburg/2024_08_14__c_Tjorben_Meier_Portraits_Museum_der_Natur_Hamburg_JPEG_02__1_.jpg%3F1743073396)
Dr. Karina Lucas Da Silva Brandao
ztm Lepidoptera & Trichoptera ScientistPhone: +49 40 238317 602
E-mail: k.brandao@leibniz-lib.de/leibniz-lib.de/fileadmin/user_upload/home/Bilder/LIB/Ueber_das_LIB/Mitarbeitende/Hamburg/Nguyen__Eileen__c_Tjorben_Meier_Portraits.JPG%3F1736151075)