Thank you for your email expressing your views with regard to the Real Life Bugs and Insects magazine.
As you might imagine the Museum has not taken the decision to associate itself with this new magazine series lightly, as with any decision to work in partnership. Our entomology department holds over 28 million insect specimens, which have a high research and educational value. If you have visited the Museum you will know how stimulating real specimens are from a public viewpoint. They also provide a vital resource for scientists around the world researching problems such as disease, climate change and the evolution of life on Earth.
One of the key factors in the decision to take this partnership forward was its educational value. There is a very clear purpose for the specimens in that they add significantly to the high quality educational content of this magazine.
It is true that the quality of imagery and computers has seen vast improvements in recent years, however for the study of insects there is real additional value in actually seeing and handling a specimen. Only then do you get a sense of the scale and the detail of the creature’s shape and form.
Specimens in resin are less fragile than pinned specimens and so are likely to last a long time without damage and be handled by many more people than those who purchase them. Indeed, this means that specimens in resin are used everyday in hands-on learning activities in our galleries. They can also be viewed under a magnifying glass or microscope to reveal more detail at the pace and desired focus of the observer, rather than that of a film, web or book editor.
We make it a strict condition of the Museum association with insects in resin that these are insects genuinely bred in captivity in a sustainable manner without introductions from wild populations. And that they are used for positive educational value. This partnership was considered to be a worthwhile venture to stimulate genuine interest in natural history among young people and, in doing so, encourage and inspire the next generation to study science.
I hope this explains our position clearly.
Yours sincerely,
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