Journeys
The expeditions, reassembled
Every dated label is a diary entry. Read a collector’s labels in order and the voyage comes back: the islands in sequence, the days at each, the specimens from every stop. 2,237 journeys so far, 1874 to 2026, 440,730 specimens between them.
965 collectors and expeditions37,623 days in the field7,838,218 km between stops330,332 photographed specimens
2,237 journeys match



Hans George Hornbostel
Guam · Jun – Jul 1923
Hans George Hornbostel in Guam, June – July 1923296 specimens · 14 stops · 60 days · 221,255 km
J. Polloi
8 islands of the United States · Sep – Oct 2002
J. Polloi across 8 islands of the United States, September – October 2002301 specimens · 13 stops · 32 days · 5,304 km
William J. Hoe
Maui · May – Jun 1976
William J. Hoe in Maui, May – June 1976257 specimens · 13 stops · 38 days · 162 km


Charles N. Forbes
4 islands of the United States · Jan – Jun 1916
Charles N. Forbes across 4 islands of the United States, January – June 1916175 specimens · 26 stops · 156 days · 2,894 km
M. Jacobs
Sumatra · Apr – May 1968
M. Jacobs in Sumatra, April – May 1968255 specimens · 13 stops · 35 days · 1,817 km

Gerrit Parmele Wilder
3 islands of French Polynesia · Aug – Dec 1932
Gerrit Parmele Wilder in Makatea, Tahiti and Moorea, August – December 1932218 specimens · 23 stops · 120 days · 1,308 km
L.E. Hair
25 islands · Jun – Aug 1966
L.E. Hair across 25 islands, June – August 1966263 specimens · 10 stops · 73 days · 5,300 km
Otto Degener
6 islands · Apr – Sep 1964
Otto Degener across 6 islands, April – September 1964168 specimens · 57 stops · 146 days · 10,662 km
H.L. Lyon
Maui · Nov 1908 – Jan 1909
H.L. Lyon in Maui, November 1908 – January 1909176 specimens · 31 stops · 82 days
T.G. Laman
Borneo · Oct – Nov 1996
T.G. Laman in Borneo, October – November 1996272 specimens · 12 stops · 23 days · 4,031 km
Adolph D.E. Elmer
3 islands of the Philippines · May – Jun 1909
Adolph D.E. Elmer in Mindanao, Phililppine Island and Luzon, May – June 1909498 specimens · 3 stops · 32 days
Walter M. Giffard
Hawaiʻi Island · Feb – Aug 1911
Walter M. Giffard in Hawaiʻi Island, February – August 1911344 specimens · 19 stops · 170 days
P.A. Schafer
4 islands of French Polynesia · Jan – Apr 1975
P.A. Schafer across 4 islands of French Polynesia, January – April 1975231 specimens · 36 stops · 89 days · 329 km
R.J. Baker
3 islands of the United States · Sep 1932 – Jan 1933
R.J. Baker in Molokaʻi, Oʻahu and Kauaʻi, September 1932 – January 1933204 specimens · 16 stops · 115 days · 120 km
Jan Newhouse
5 islands · May – Sep 1954
Jan Newhouse across 5 islands, May – September 1954224 specimens · 51 stops · 114 days · 18,081 km
William J. Hoe
Maui and Hawaiʻi Island · Aug – Sep 1967
William J. Hoe in Maui and Hawaiʻi Island, August – September 1967295 specimens · 9 stops · 32 days · 151 km
Afrastini Ismail
3 islands · Jun – Aug 1994
Afrastini Ismail in Bali Timur, Bali and Oʻahu, June – August 1994196 specimens · 18 stops · 86 days · 105 km
Reid Moran
Okinawa · Feb – Apr 1955
Reid Moran in Okinawa, February – April 1955167 specimens · 32 stops · 75 days · 6,395 km
Derral R. Herbst
4 islands of the United States · Feb – May 1973
Derral R. Herbst across 4 islands of the United States, February – May 1973186 specimens · 22 stops · 93 days · 1,628 km



Clarence H. Cooke Jr.
Kauaʻi and Molokaʻi · Jun – Jul 1914
Clarence H. Cooke Jr. in Kauaʻi and Molokaʻi, June – July 1914303 specimens · 7 stops · 37 days · 413 km
W.R. Sykes
Atiu and Rarotonga · Jun – Aug 1991
W.R. Sykes in Atiu and Rarotonga, June – August 1991252 specimens · 27 stops · 40 days
Harold St.John
7 islands · Nov – Dec 1953
Harold St.John across 7 islands, November – December 1953254 specimens · 14 stops · 33 days · 9,010 km


F.G. Smith
4 islands of the United States · Jan – May 1929
F.G. Smith across 4 islands of the United States, January – May 1929185 specimens · 19 stops · 110 days · 1,335 km



William H. Meinecke
Kauaʻi and Hawaiʻi Island · Jun – Aug 1925
William H. Meinecke in Kauaʻi and Hawaiʻi Island, June – August 1925271 specimens · 8 stops · 60 days · 622 km
How a journey is found
Every specimen with a full date and a known collector is a diary entry. The days are read in order; a gap of more than three weeks ends one journey and starts the next. Days spent where a collector lived most of their life are home, not travel, and are left out.
A journey needs at least five days, forty specimens and two places. Within it, a run of days spent within about ten kilometres is one stop; the stop’s point is the middle of the labels that carry coordinates, or the island’s centre when none do.
Companions are the people whose own labels put them in the same place on the same days. Staff can name a journey, write about it and feature it; everything else here is read straight off the specimens, and is rebuilt as the records improve.
