[Nhcoll-l] sex indication in butterfly collection

[Martin Sluk]

Hello

In looking at the card catalogue of a butterfly collection we're noticing a
use of the Mars and Venus symbols I've not seen before. Most specimens have
the sex symbols written twice, one "upside-down" and one "right-side-up".
Sometimes this will be a normally oriented Venus followed by an upside-down
one, or an upside-down Venus followed by a right side up mars etc.
Furthermore there are some specimens with the sex left blank and some with
the sex indicated by a single unambiguous symbol.

 

I'm wondering if perhaps this is a common way to indicate something in the
invertebrate world that I'm just not familiar with. This data is from the
late 19th and early 20th centuries. Thanks for any leads you can give us.
We're a small and entomologist-less staff.

 

-Martin Sluk



---
This email has been checked for viruses by AVG.
https://www.avg.com
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://mailman.yale.edu/pipermail/nhcoll-l/attachments/20180627/3b453639/attachment.html>