Mr Ed Baker ARCS, AMInstP

Biography

My interests are divided between the orthopteroid insects (in particular stick insects and cockroaches) and the field of biodiversity informatics.

Employment history

• 2011- Drupal Developer, Scratchpads Project, Natural History Museum, London
  Development of the Scratchpads project supported by eMonocot and ViBRANT. Scratchpads
• 2009- Development Officer and Webmaster, International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature
  Development of a new website for the ICZN and management of new applications to the Commission. More information about the work of the ICZN is available from their website. International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature
• 2008-2010 Biodiversity Technician, Natural History Museum, London.
  Work on various projects relating to online taxonomy and digitisation. Many of these projects made use of the Scratchpads framework.

Qualifications

• BSc (Hons) Physics, Imperial College London

Further Information

Further information about my work can be found on my personal website.

Professional Roles

I am involved with several organisations related to orthopteroid insects and invertebrate rearing, and edit several journals in these areas.

Some of these organisations, in particular the Blattodea Culture Group and the Phasmid Study Group, provide a forum for amateur enthusiasts to share knowledge with professional entomologists. As a result of providing this support to the amateur community members of the Phasmid Study Group have made a significant contribution to the taxonomy of stick and leaf insects. I am currently expanding this work by collating data about phasmids and publishing this information online via the Group's website.

Editorial boards

• Editor-in-Chief, Cockroach Studies
  Cockroach Studies is a full colour journal which is published twice yearly and is sent to Blattodea Culture Group members. Cockroach Studies publishes contributions ranging from articles about breeding cockroaches in captivity and reports about collecting trips; to more technical papers about the taxonomy, biology and ecology of cockroaches. Cockroach Studies
• Editor, Phasmid Study Group Newsletter
  The Phasmid Study Group Newsletter is issued quarterly and contains news items, livestock information, details of exhibitions and meetings, and a variety of short articles on all aspects of phasmids.
  Phasmid Study Group Newsletter
• Editor, Invertebrate Rearing
  I started the journal Invertebrate Rearing as a forum for the publication of electronic, open-access papers on any aspect of the rearing of invertebrates in captivity. The journal accepts and encourages articles both technical and non-technical in nature from both amateurs and professionals. It is hoped that the journal will provide a platform for professionals and knowledgeable amateurs to meet on common ground and encourage the sharing of knowledge between these groups. Invertebrate Rearing

Memberships

• IUCN Grasshopper Specialist Group
  The aim of the Group is to conserve orthopteroid insects (grasshoppers, katydids, crickets, mantids, stick insects, cockroaches) and their habitats around the world. This is acheived by developing and implementing practical conservation programs, including habitat restoration and management, monitoring of populations and reintroduction projects. In addition the Group is invovled in performing red list assessments, developing bioacoustic monitoring tools and producing guidelines for reintroductions and grassland conservation. IUCN/SSN Grasshopper Specialist Group
• Phasmid Study Group
  The Phasmid Study Group is a group for professional entomologists and amateur enthusiasts who have an interest in stick and leaf insects.
  Phasmid Study Group
• Blattodea Culture Group
  The Blattodea Culture Group is a society for professional blattologists and cockroach enthusiasts. It holds regular meetings and publishes the journal Cockroach Studies. Blattodea Culture Group

Digitisation

I am involved in a number of projects that aim to digitise parts of the museum's collections and make the information they contain online.

Projects

• Index to the Pittioni Collection of bees
  The card index to the Pittioni collection contains a large amount of valuable information that is not recorded on the specimen labels, including a large amount of information on European pollinators. This project aims to make scans of the index cards available to the public, and it is hoped that overtime they will be transcribed and the valuable information made available to the scientific community. Pittioni Collection Online
• Photography of specimens for Blattodea Species File
  Photography of type and exemplar specimens for the Blattodea Species File. Blattodea Species File
• Beetles of Mauritius
  The Beetles of Mauritius website provides an online catalogue of Mauritian coleoptera, with images of specimens from the museum's collections, and contributed images from other interested parties. Beetles of Mauritius

Publications

Electronic Databases & Websites

• Phasmida SpeciesFile (Assiststant Editor)
  Taxonomic database of the world's stick and leaf insects. Phasmida Species File
• Phasmid Study Group Website
  Website for the Phasmid Study Group using the Scratchpads system. Phasmid Study Group
• Blattodea Culture Group Website
  Website for the Blattodea Culture Group using the Scratchpads system. Blattodea Culture Group
• Beetles of Mauritius
  Catalogue of Mauritian beetles with images of representatives found in the Natural History Museum's collections. Beetles of Mauritius

Popular Publications

I make regular contributions to the magazine Practical Reptile Keeping on various aspects of rearing invertebrates (particularly stick insects) in captivity. Some of these articles are subsequently translated into German and published in ZAG-Phoenix.

Complete List

For a complete list of my publications please see my personal site.