Preservation Type
Sample Pinned, Sample Fluid Preserved, Storage Indoors, Sample Slide Mount
Description
The Entomological Museum was named after Filippo Silvestri in 2004. One of the foremost experts on Italian Entomology of the last century, Silvestri arrived in Portici in 1904, and with his arrival the collections were significantly enriched: diplurans, thysanurans, termites and strepsipterans are now among the most important collections in the world. Silvestri also deepened the study of nature and the biological fight against pests. A great naturalist explorer, he collected many materials during his research trips, while other important collections come from donations from specialists in other countries. The museum also holds insect collections and zoological material acquired by Achille Costa (1823-1898), professor of agricultural entomology at the Portici School from 1876. Costa's interests were mainly oriented toward the study of mites, of which he set up an interesting collection of a thousand microscopic preparations referable to a variety of families. In 1889 in one of the rooms of the Cabinet of Zoology a small entomological collection was arranged with material collected in Gussone Park. In the following decades the collections were enriched with material purchased or donated by Italian and foreign entomologists and with material of agricultural interest, such as insects harmful to crops. The collections currently include tens of thousands of specimens related to numerous orders of insects: apterigotes (more than 2,000 preparations), termites (884 species), mealybugs (about 6,000 specimens), and thousands of samples of hymenopterans and beetles. New exhibits have recently been set up, geared for educational use, concerning crucial issues in scientific debates and economies of today's world.
