This website and the underlying database were prepared in cooperation with the Orthopterists' Society. The decision to proceed in this manner was deliberate for two reasons: to provide continuity, and because of the magnitude of the job. The database should be a growing and evolving thing that continues past the careers of those who have responsibility for it from time to time. This database was started by Daniel Otte, enhanced first by Piotr Naskrecki and later by David Eades. Someday David Eades will relinquish the responsibility, and it will be up to a committee of the Orthopterists' Society to select a successor. In addition to the matter of continuity, it seems clear the tasks of maintaining the site and updating the database to keep it current are too much for any single person.
Members of the Orthopterists' Society are invited to participate in making this website and database better. Participation can be at various levels.
- Communicate comments, suggestions and corrections to any of the experts listed on the home page or to David Eades (send mail).
- Send reprints to David Eades, Illinois Natural History Survey, 1816 S. Oak Street, Champaign, IL 61820, USA. Reprints received will be given priority for incorporation of data into the database.
- Submit images and/or sound recordings for inclusion in the database. The source will be acknowledged when users view images or listen to sound recordings.
- Be the expert for a group that is of particular interest to you. Experts are listed in the lower part of the home page. Responsibilities are:
- Once a year review the information shown for the group and note any problems.
- Either edit the database over the Internet to fix any problems, or else communicate the problems to David Eades. Changes to the database should conform to the editorial policy.
- If you have your own database, you may want to use "TaxonNameID." This is an identification number used in this database that will remain with each taxon regardless of where that taxon is shifted in the hierarchy in the future. It can be used to facilitate hyperlinks between databases and to update databases for changes in nomenclature.
- Develop new types of information. There are many useful ways the project could be expanded. This final level of participation requires some knowledge of computer programming and a serious time commitment. Contact David Eades if you are interested.
The Orthopterists' Society has funds available for support of database work. The Orthoptera Database Committee is able to make grants totalling about US$28,000 per year. Committee members are:
- María Marta Cigliano (send mail), Division Entomologia, Museo de la Plata, Paseo del Bosque S/N, 1900 La Plata, Argentina
- Ted Cohn (send mail), Museum of Zoology, University of Michigan, 1109 Geddes Ave., Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA
- David Eades (send mail), Illinois Natural History Survey, 1816 S. Oak Street, Champaign, IL 61820, USA
- Sigfrid Ingrisch (send mail), Zoologisches Forschungsinstitut und Museum Alexander Koenig, Adenauerallee 160, D-53113 Bonn, Germany
- Michel Lecoq (send mail), CIRAD, Département amis Acridologie opérationnelle (Prifas), TA40/D, Campus International de Baillarguet, 34398 Montpellier Cedex 5, France
- Piotr Naskrecki (send mail), Museum of Comparative Zoology, Harvard University, 26 Oxford Street, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA
- Daniel Otte (send mail), Academy of Natural Sciences,1900 Benjamin Franklin Parkway, Philadelphia, PA 19103, USA
- David Rentz (send mail), CSIRO, Division of Entomology, Canberra, Australia
- Hugh Rowell (send mail), Chalet Oreïna, 3961 Ayer, Switzerland
Committee members are appointed by the President of the Orthopterists' Society. The responsibilities of the committee are:
- To advise on design of database and priorities for tasks.
- To grant awards from the endowment (currently about US$28,000 each year). For
more information, see grants.
- To review proposed changes to higher ranks within the database. This has been proposed, but there is no current consensus that this should be a committee responsibility.
Acknowledgments
In addition to those listed on the home page, Marilyn Beckman, Lesley Deem, Richard Flood, Elizabeth Frank, Peggy Hill, Mike Maehr, Fay Mayer, Patti Peek, David Rentz, Klaus Riede, Hugh Rowell and Thomas J. Walker have contributed to the development of or entered data into the OSF database. The home page image at the left comes from Orthoptera Species File Online, version 1. The image at the right is Neoxabea bipunctata, photograph by Bill Hall.
