Max Barclay

Maxwell V. L. Barclay
Nationality British
Fields Entomology
Institutions The Natural History Museum, London

Maxwell V L Barclay, usually known as Max Barclay, is a British entomologist, and Curator and Collections Manager of Coleoptera and Hemiptera at the Natural History Museum in London.[1] He is a Fellow of the Royal Entomological Society,[2] and a member of the Editorial Board of The Coleopterist journal.[3] He has been described as ‘one of Britain’s leading entomologists’ [4]

Barclay is one of the four virtual ‘Scientist Guides’ of the Natural History Museum’s new Darwin Centre and was among the group that showed the building to Prince William at its 2009 opening. He is a frequent public speaker and media spokesman for entomology and for the Museum, most notably appearing in three of the six episodes of the 2010 BBC Series 'Museum of Life' [5] presented by Jimmy Doherty. He believes that public speaking is important ‘to enthuse the next generation of scientists and naturalists, and to legitimise what we do in the eyes of the public”.[6] In 2008 he was involved in the identification of a species of bug new to Britain in the Museum’s garden which led to a great deal of media interest.[7][8]

In the scientific world, Barclay is best known for his work on beetles (Coleoptera), and is author of numerous scientific papers and co-editor of a text book on the subject.[9] A lifelong entomologist, He worked as a volunteer in the Department of Entomology for several years before being offered the post of Curator in 2001.[10] The collection of the Natural History Museum that he manages includes more than 20,000 drawers of beetles, including specimens collected by Joseph Banks, Charles Darwin and Alfred Russel Wallace.[11] He has travelled extensively in search of specimens, including to Bolivia, Peru, Taiwan and Thailand,[12] and has discovered numerous new species. More than 50 beetles have been named in his honour by fellow scientists, including:

Carabidae

Ptiliidae

Scarabaeidae

Cantharidae

Heteroceridae

Limnichidae

Elateridae

Dermestidae

Scirtidae

Psephenidae

Buprestidae

Lycidae

Coccinellidae

Helotidae

Nitidulidae

Latridiidae

Anthicidae

Ischaliidae

Tenebrionidae

Oedemeridae

Cerambycidae

Chrysomelidae

Anthribidae

Rhynchitidae

Brentidae

Curculionidae

as well as the wasp Platygaster barclayi Buhl, 2011

Personal life

Barclay is married with children.[15] As a teenager he worked as a volunteer at the Durrell Wildlife Park[16] and he cites Gerald Durrell as a significant influence.

References

  1. ↑ http://www.nhm.ac.uk/research-curation/staff-directory/entomology/m-barclay/index.html
  2. ↑ http://www.royensoc.co.uk/onlineforum/member.php?action=profile&uid=16
  3. ↑ http://www.coleopterist.org.uk/
  4. ↑ http://shop.amentsoc.org/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=187
  5. ↑ IMDB Page for Max Barclay accessed April 2011: http://www.imdb.com/name/nm3348926/
  6. ↑ http://www.nhm.ac.uk/research-curation/staff-directory/entomology/m-barclay/index.html
  7. ↑ http://www.time.com/time/health/article/0,8599,1822936,00.html
  8. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DLSupmiNlaY&playnext=1&list=PLD83F21642C3F38BE
  9. ↑ Cooter J. & Barclay M.V.L. (eds.) (2006) A Coleopterist’s Handbook. Amateur Entomological Society. 439 pages. ISBN 0-900054-70-0
  10. ↑ http://women.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/women/the_way_we_live/article5030038.ece
  11. ↑ http://blogs.nationalinsectweek.co.uk/about/dr-max-barclay/
  12. ↑ Barkham, P. 2010. Meet The Beetles. http://www.guardian.co.uk/science/2010/mar/18/beetles-natural-history-museum
  13. ↑ Lee, Chi-Feng, 2011. Aquatic Insects 33: 165-169
  14. ↑ Rucker, W. 2012. Vier neue Arten der Gattung Cartodere (Aridius) C. G. Thomson, 1859 aus Papua-Neuguinea und Neuseeland (Coleoptera: Latridiidae) http://www.latridiidae.de/zeitschrift-journal/heft-9---2012/heft-9-2019.php
  15. ↑ Crewe, C. 2008. How an obsession can become a career. http://women.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/women/the_way_we_live/article5030038.ece
  16. ↑ http://blogs.nationalinsectweek.co.uk/about/dr-max-barclay/
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