Sender Address Correction: Need Info for "Butterflies of Bulgaria"

[Zdravko Kolev]

Just saw that I had sent this announcement from my friend's address
(Anteex, Jaska!)... So here it is again:


Dear friends with a soft spot for European butterflies,

In the near future I will open a web-site "Butterflies of Bulgaria", where I
will present information I have collected on the butterflies (incl.
skippers) of my native country, Bulgaria, in the Central Balkan Peninsula.

My aim is to provide a comprehensive overview with up-to-date information on
the rich butterfly fauna (210+ species so far, of which at least 8 endemic
to the Balkans) of a little-known country in a little-known region of
Europe. The site "Butterflies of Bulgaria" will not provide so much
taxonomical details - these will be left to a later publication, the
completion of which in fact necessitates the creation of this preliminary,
virtual version. Instead, I will stress identification (with descriptions,
drawings of genitalia and photographs - some of live specimens in their
natural habitat), distribution, and conservation status.

I have a good overview on what's been published about Bulgarian butterflies,
at least in readily acessible European journals, as well as great many
unpublished recors from Bulgarian and some foreign collectors. However, my
experience shows that Bulgaria is visited each year by a large number of
collectors - the most interesting finds they make are published, but most
are not.
That is why I would like to address those of you who have ever collected or
observed butterflies in Bulgaria: I will be very grateful for any
distributional data you may provide for my project, and your contribution
will be thankfully acknowledged. I am interested in your data regarding
every species you have collected or reliably identified in the field -
including those which are widespread and common (there is a surprising lack
of distributional data about many such species). If you need help with
identifying your Bulgarian material, I will be glad to be of assistance.
Just get in touch!

Many thanks in advance,

Zdravko Kolev
Department of Ecology and Systematics
Division of Population Biology
University of Helsinki
e-mail: zdravko.kolev at helsinki.fi