Darn, and to think all this time I was proud of having collected specimens
and recorded name, location, date, depth, and habitat description(when
unexpected).  Guess I'll just have to chuck everything and start
again....Sigh.
 
Charles
 
-----Original Message-----
From: Conchologists of America List [mailto:[log in to unmask]]On
Behalf Of ferreter
Sent: Wednesday, January 14, 1998 9:29 AM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Benefit of "individual" collectors
 
 
One clear benefit of the individual collector or dealer is that the data
is more accurate. This is no reflection on other dealers but most get
their supplies from a broker who gets them from a collector or harvester.
These harvesters might be out for a week at a time attending to tangle
nets and searching reefs for specimens. No records are kept thusly the
data we the collector receives is almost always "generic" . I.E.
<italic>conus geographus </italic>Cebu, Philippines. This is generic data
is most cases. An individual dealer / collector or independent will
almost always have much more extensive data.
 
I once asked a leading marine biologist to give me some guidelines as to
what is the scientific approach to data recording. A "proper" data tag
would need the following to be considered "complete", name of specimen,
date collected, time collected, tidal range , GPS coordinates, salinity
of water, temp. of water. identification of bottom matrix, vegetation in
area and accurate depth of water. mjb