Max Barclay
Maxwell V L Barclay FRES is a British entomologist, and Curator and Collections Manager of Coleoptera and Hemiptera at the Natural History Museum in London. He is a Fellow of the Royal Entomological Society, and a member of the editorial board of The Coleopterist journal. He has been described as ‘one of Britain’s leading entomologists’. Career. Barclay is one of the four virtual ‘Scientist Guides’ of the Natural History Museum’s new Darwin Centre and was among the group that showed the building to Prince William at its 2009 opening. He is a frequent public speaker and  media spokesman for entomology and for the Museum, most notably appearing in three of the six episodes of the 2010 BBC Series "Museum of Life" presented by Jimmy Doherty. He believes that public speaking is important 'to enthuse the next generation of scientists and naturalists, and to legitimise what we do in the eyes of the public'. In 2016 he gave the Royal Entomological Society's Verrall Lecture speaking on 'Collections: the last great frontiers of exploration'. In 2008 he was involved in the identification of a species of bug new to Britain in the Museum’s garden. Barclay is  best known for his work on beetles (Coleoptera), and is author of scientific papers and co-editor of a text book on the subject. He worked as a volunteer in the Department of Entomology for several years before being offered the post of Curator in 2001. The collection of the Natural History Museum that he manages includes more than 20,000 drawers of beetles, including specimens collected by Joseph Banks, Charles Darwin and Alfred Russel Wallace. He has travelled extensively in search of specimens, including to Bolivia, Peru, Taiwan and Thailand, and has discovered new species. Recognition. 90 beetle species have  been named in his honour by fellow scientists, including: Carabidae Hydrophilidae Ptiliidae Staphylinidae Scarabaeidae Cantharidae Heteroceridae Limnichidae Throscidae Eucnemidae Elateridae Ptinidae Dermestidae Scirtidae Psephenidae Buprestidae Lycidae Coccinellidae Helotidae Nitidulidae Latridiidae Aderidae Anthicidae Ischaliidae Tenebrionidae Oedemeridae Cerambycidae Chrysomelidae Anthribidae Rhynchitidae Brentidae Curculionidae as well as the wasp "Platygaster barclayi" Buhl, 2011 and the fulgorid bug "Polydictya barclayi" Constant, 2016 Personal life. Barclay is married with children. As a teenager he worked as a volunteer at the Durrell Wildlife Park and he cites Gerald Durrell as a significant influence.