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Post by deliasfanatic on Apr 23, 2017 18:10:50 GMT
You're in good company here
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Post by wollastoni on Apr 23, 2017 19:25:57 GMT
Welcome to the club bro ! :-)
Delias ellipsis is a good investment as its collecting is now banned in New Caledonia.
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Post by deliasfanatic on Apr 29, 2017 15:53:59 GMT
That's a difficult question with many answers. There are a lot of rare species, some known only from a few specimens; many others are less rare, but highly desirable due to their great beauty. In general, the New Guinea species include the majority of rarities, including females of species that are common as males. I could come up with a list of species that everyone wants, but it would be a long list, particularly if subspecies and/or females are included!
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Post by wollastoni on Apr 29, 2017 17:51:46 GMT
If you look for splendid Delias species, I would say for example : Delias prouti, Delias sagessa, Delias klossi, Delias inexpectata, Delias autumnalis, Delias callista, Delias luctuosa and many others.
For a collection, New Guinean alpine species are the most interesting.
Have fun !
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Post by wollastoni on May 1, 2017 16:21:27 GMT
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Post by trehopr1 on May 1, 2017 19:03:44 GMT
In my humble opinion, I find the Delias species of New Ireland and New Britain to be the most stunning and beautiful of all. I have only learned of these fabulous species thru the tireless efforts of forum member Nomad who has posted much on Delias in general. His photographs and related stories on Delias species he has acquired from those 2 places in particular are exhilarating. The species Delias bagoe (New Ireland/ Schleinitz Mnts.) and Delias salvini (E.New Britain) are simply breathtaking ! Another incredible species is Delias mayrfoferi (E. New Britain) which is mostly velvety black with a crimson red splash. It has been mentioned by Deliasfanatic that New Guinea offers the majority of rarities (especially females); and Wollastoni also said New Guinea alpine species are the most interesting. However, I cannot help but think that surely the Bismarch species rival anything in New Guinea in terms except that there are not anywhere near as many species present. The distance alone (from New Guinea) is staggering.... A older collector friend I know visited New Ireland and New Britain in Sept. 1985 after a first stop in New Guinea. He told me personally that it took him 2 hours flight time to get to New Ireland which was about 1200 miles from N.G. He stayed a week and remarked that it felt "extremely remote" and as though he had stepped even further back in "Stone Age" time than when he was in N.G. !! He never did find any of the endemic Delias he had been wishing for but, did collect about 40 Alcides aurora in his week stay along with some Priamus.
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Post by deliasfanatic on May 1, 2017 19:26:58 GMT
Agreed, the species from the Bismarcks are really spectacular too, in a different way from those of mainland NG. The Bismarck species tend to have bold patches of red, yellow, and white on a black background; those are the same hues as the NG species have, but they are differently arranged; with practice, one can pick out the Bismarck species right away.
Trehopr, your friend probably didn't visit high altitudes, the home of most Delias. Offhand, only D. madetes and lytaea come to mind as species that would be found at lower altitudes in the Bismarcks.
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Post by deliasfanatic on May 1, 2017 19:57:03 GMT
Hempeli was a great rarity until a few years ago; now males, and the occasional female, can be obtained but aren't cheap. Prouti is much less expensive (and one of the premiere beauties in the genus!), but lately it seems a little scarcer than previously.
My vote for the 5 most striking species would probably vary day by day, but today I would say (in no particular order) bagoe callista callista messalina prouti luctuosa kuning
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Post by wollastoni on May 2, 2017 16:57:53 GMT
Yes rarest Delias still command 4-number prices.
About 10 species may command such crazy amounts (cumanau, durai, elusiva,...). Some rare females too.
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Post by deliasfanatic on May 2, 2017 17:12:08 GMT
Agreed, I'd say that rare Papilionidae and Charaxinae bring the highest prices, but rare Delias are not far below them.
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Post by wollastoni on May 2, 2017 17:20:41 GMT
Then things can change fastly on prices.
Let's say that Asian stuff is cheaper now than 10 years ago (except big rarities) and New Guinea species tend to be more and more expensive (no more local collectors except in Arfak, death of Henk, IFTA and Wau Institute closed, collecting ban, high speed deforestation...). A lot of bad news from New Guinea have make Delias from there rarer and rarer on the market.
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Post by deliasfanatic on May 2, 2017 18:49:05 GMT
You could name your price on the "impossible" species (cumanau and others from Foja Mts, for example), but I term them as "impossible" since they very nearly are just that; they are missing from nearly all collections including museums. Historic specimens impossible to obtain today are a similar category and could go for any price. (Same as Papilionidae and any other popular groups.) After these, many species from the Bismarcks would bring high prices (let's say $200-1500 depending on species), along with rare species and females from NG. Not to worry, however, as one can have a very nice collection with good representation of a large proportion of species (New Guinea and otherwise) for reasonable prices, for example $5 to $75 per specimen.
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