Work on Sri Lankan arthropods Robert Templeton

a ceylon blue oakleaf butterfly kallima philarchus templeton collection @ ulster museum

in ceylon templeton worked on lepidoptera, coleoptera , hymenoptera alongside edgar leopold layard (1824–1900). new species of lepidoptera collected templeton , layard described frederic moore, francis walker , george robert gray. new coleoptera described joseph sugar baly, francis walker, john obadiah westwood, carl august dohrn , francis polkinghorne pascoe. templeton s publications on lepidoptera amount general comments on papilionid butterflies , 2 species descriptions — oiketicus terlius , oiketicus (cryptothelia) consortus. bulk of new beetles, of hymenoptera (the rest described frederick smith) , other insects in templeton s collection described francis walker compiled first list of insects of ceylon tennent s book ceylon, physical, historical , topographical based on collections of templeton, layard, british museum , museum of east india company; there 2,000 species , layard , templeton captured between them 932 species of butterflies , moths in ceylon many, new science. templeton supplied many of insects incorporated in westwood s book oriental cabinet, 1 of which, beetle compsosternus templetonii bears name. unfortunately published part of templeton s correspondence westwood (the secretary of entomological society) survived, manuscripts apparently lost. templeton s ceylon insect collection apparently divided between belfast museum (now in national museum of ireland), entomological society of london , british museum (the entomological society s collections incorporated in of latter institution). templeton s watercolour paintings of ceylon butterflies in ulster museum, belfast. templeton, layard , george henry kendrick thwaites , later john nietner (died 1874) contributed known of insect fauna of island @ end of first half of nineteenth century including privately printed list of thysanura, myriapoda, scorpionidea, cheliferidae , phrynidae (now amblypygi) ceylon not traced, , remarked on habits of large poisonous centipedes scolopendra pallipes , s. crassa in 2 (published) communications westwood. many of manuscripts lost when clipper memnon sank in 1851.