Dr.
Ratcliffe is seen here hunkering down in the mountains of Panama
in Central America to collect rhinoceros
beetles . He is studying these
awesome giants of the bug world to understand the ecology, history
and distribution of them in Costa Rica and Panama. Rhinoceros
beetles belong to the family Scarabaeidae which is the
fifth largest family of beetles, with nearly 30,000 species known!
And guess what? There are even more species that aren't yet known.
More species are found in Central and South America than in any
other part of the world!
"The
Dynastinae is one of the most conspicuous subfamilies of Scarabaeidae,
and it occurs in all the major biogeographic regions of the world.
About 1,400 species of dynastines are known although the actual
numbers of them will probably reach 2,000."
Dr. Ratcliffe
The
objectives of the project he is working on are : (1) to create
a collection of beetles from Costa Rica, Panama, and the United
States and (2) to publish a well-illustrated field manual which
details all the Dynastinae of Panama and Costa Rica. Included
in the manual will be descriptions of all species, geographical
and temporal distributions, ecological and life history data,
and both English and Spanish keys to identify the species.
The
users of the manual he is helping to create would be; Costa Rican
and Panamanian scientists and students studying their local fauna;
ecologists who encounter these insects in their studies and who
need identifications and information on biology and distribution;
biogeographers needing distributional data; park and reserve managers
needing to establish management plans, educational programs, or
research opportunities; applied entomologists in each country
requiring information about pest status; and a whole lot of regular
people who just like to read about and collect beetles for fun.
Costa
Rica and Panama are small countries that are rich in diverse animals
and plants. But they are also countries of intense land development
where pristine areas are being developed by humans. Knowledge
about the plants and animals of a country helps to keep delicate
ecosystems intact. Inventories, such as the one Dr. Ratcliffe
is working to create, are basic to that understanding.
..."In
order to arrive at a sound view of ecology in tropical ecosystems,
we must first identify and catalog the fauna. The growing recognition
of the importance to humankind of tropical forests and the mounting
concern for their future is well known. The pace of basic research
in the tropics must be accelerated, and failure to do so will
eventually limit our capability to contribute solutions to impending
scientific and human problems." Dr. Ratcliffe
It's
scientists like Dr. Ratcliffe who go out into the world and scope
out more bugs, identify and catalog them. As a scientist out in
the field Dr. Ratcliffe gets to experience the excitement of being
the first human being to see new species of beetles that have
never before been identified. Talk about trailblazing!
Other Cool
Stuff...
Here
are some of the practical skills that Dr. Ratcliffe uses on
the job everyday that were learned OUTSIDE the classroom:1.
Camping, backpacking: learned in Boy Scouts.
2. Driving a 4-wheel
drive vehicle: learned on-the-job.
3. Speaking a foreign
language: "What you learn in school is O.K., but it is not
the same thing as learning it IN a foreign country speaking to
the people with whom you are working."
4. Collecting insects
& making an insect collection: "This was a hobby when I
was a kid."
(Also, Boy Scouts
has an Insect Life merit badge, and there is an extensive 4-H
program dealing with insect collecting and study)
