A Synoptic Collection of Butterflies

Most natural history museum collections are organized by the evolutionary relationships between species. Many drawers provide an in-depth view of a particular species or genus. This drawer is different: it’s what curators call a synoptic collection because it provides an overview of something – in this case, moth species found in Ventura County.

These moths collected and beautifully organized by Tom Dimock are among the hundreds of thousands of prepared specimens overseen by Schlinger Chair of Entomology Alex Harman, PhD, at Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History.

An enlarged composite photo of the drawer is on exhibit as part of the Museum’s newest Maximus Gallery exhibit, The Collectors: A Life in Lepidoptera. The Butterfly Pavilion is now open at the Museum, too, but don’t expect to see any Ventura species there. It’s full of a thousand Costa Rican butterflies representing about two dozen tropical species.