On the Occasion of Professor J.F.R Kerr's butterfly collection being donated to ANIC ANICdotes Issue 3, October 2013, page 4: E.D. Edwards. John has modestly provided the following notes: "I developed a passion for butterflies at an early age under the guidance of the legendary Dr G.A. Waterhouse. Despite my youth he managed to implant the notion that collecting is not merely a diverting pastime but should involve scientific study. Throughout my adult life most holidays were devoted to collecting trips to various parts of Australia. A highlight was two trips to Iron Range on Cape York Peninsula with Jack Macqueen. During the first of these, in 1961, we were guests of BHP and lived in relative luxury. We discovered two New Guinean butterfly species previously unknown from Australia, Hypochrysops hippuris and Toxidia inornata. The second trip, in 1966, yielded Philiris ziska, Philiris diana papuana, Allora major and a distinctive subspecies of Candalides consimilis. We also found the early stages of Jalmenus eichhorni, at that time considered to be a subspecies of Jalmenus evagoras. The structure of the larvae and the nature of the attendant ants suggested that it was a distinct species, which was confirmed by study of the male genitalia. I have been involved in the discovery of six new endemic Australian species: Trapezites macqueeni, Hesperilla furva, Candalides geminus, Jalmenus pseudictinus, Hypochrysops piceatus and Acrodipsas mortoni. I started collecting moths after Jack Macqueen and I had spent a couple of weeks renting a house in the rainforest at Paluma. I was fascinated by the diversity of species that came to his mercury vapour lamp. I am pleased that the ANIC has agreed to accept my collection of butterflies; my moths will go to them in due course." John Kerr first met Dr Waterhouse when John and his mother were evacuated during the height of the Japanese threat to Australia during World War II, when they boarded with the Waterhouse family in Killara, Sydney. John went on to a medical career at the University of Queensland. He was, by all accounts, a very popular and engaging lecturer. He retired from the University in 1995 and was granted the title Professor Emeritus. His work in London, Brisbane and at the Pathology Department, University of Aberdeen, in 1971 resulted in a seminal paper on programmed cell death for which he, with A. H. Wyllie and A.R. Currie, coined the name 'apoptosis' in 1972 and which has since become a major line of research on medical conditions such as cancer and various degenerative disorders. In following up on his apoptosis work John carved a very distinguished medical research career replete with honours and awards. He was invested as an Officer of the Order of Australia in 1996. For more biographical information see these links: http://nla.gov.au/nla.party-1475777 and www.eoas.info/biogs/P004676b.htm. I first met John in December 1964 when he was introduced by our mutual friend, Tom Guthrie, and there followed a wonderful day's collecting in the Blue Mountains and I first saw his magnificent collection in February 1969. A story I remember is that during his sabbatical in Aberdeen John became quite nostalgic for Australia and Tom Guthrie sent him a live pupa of Ogyris abrota to cheer him up. Another notable story is that Don Sands, while working for CSIRO Entomology in Papua New Guinea in the 1970s, asked his GP about a slight niggle on his back. The GP diagnosed melanoma and Don promptly phoned John who quickly organised admission to hospital in Brisbane and removal of the tumour. This rapid action may have saved Don’s life. John mentions his 1961 trip to Iron Range, with its long WW II bomber airstrip, lush rainforest and road to the coast, which was so successful. Iron Range, or the Claudie River as the area is also called, has become a Mecca for butterfly and moth collectors as a result of this exploratory trip. It is easy to see the significance today of the bombshell which burst on butterfly students following this trip and the realisation that there were more New Guinean species to discover in the north. Indeed John, Don Sands and Jack Macqueen showed there were also endemic new species to discover and pioneered a butterfly 'enlightenment' during the 1960s, which endures to this day. John's collection, one of the best in Australia, consists of nine twelve-drawer beautiful cedar cabinets with immaculately prepared specimens. It contains one holotype, 71 paratypes of 16 species and some unique and some historical specimens. It is an immensely valuable accession to the ANIC and we sincerely thank John and Maureen for their wonderful gift.