I WRITE in response to your letter from Mrs Julia L Schoon published on your Letters' page on December 29 titled 'Insect gifts are hideous novelties'. I am the person who was selling the exotic butterflies, spiders and other insects at the market.

I am very concerned that your readers will be given the wrong impression by Mrs Schoon, who unfortunately chose not to discuss her reservations with me at the market and is misinformed on the subject.

I do not sell any rare or endangered species at all and I am totally against the trading of any such wild-caught species which are protected by Control of Trade in Endangered Species (CITES).

The specimens I sell are bred at butterfly farms, many of which are Government sponsored. In fact, with the money raised from the sales of common species, many farms are encouraged to also breed rarer species so that numbers are preserved in the wild.

Insects etc are also bred for other reasons - these include agricultural research, medicinal and other scientific purposes, for silk, for food colourings, educational reasons, for display at farms and in some parts of the world, for food. Some of the insects will die naturally, but, yes I admit, that many of the specimens will be humanely killed to preserve them in their true glory.

Whilst I cannot justify the death of an individual insect, (neither can the farmer who sends his animals for slaughter to produce what is, after all, an inessential food, or for the leather for our shoes, clothes and furniture) I can say that the frames I sell in no way decrease the population of insects in the wild and, in fact, they might help to preserve an endangered species for a few more vital years.

Considering that there are more insects in the world than every other living animal, including man, in total, it is tragic that not enough is known about the fascinating world of insects.

It is a widely held misconception that insects in the wild are endangered by collectors.

The main threat to individual species is habitat destruction and in fact certain species are becoming extinct before they are discovered as a result of this.

Scientific research has shown that if all the insects are collected from a tree it will be rehabitated again within a fortnight. However, if that tree is cut down, it can obviously never again be lived in by insects.

Scientists also estimate that there are one million insects in the world per human being. They also suggest that there are one million known species of insect in the world and nine million unknown species.

Some of these insects are obviously endangered but without the help of butterfly farms and national parks there would be many more species which would be lost to mankind's insistence on the destruction of the rainforests.

I share the same wishes as Mrs Schoon as I love insects and am certainly not here to make a quick buck, but, I am here to provide what, in my biased opinion, I consider to be the best quality framed insects on the market, to people whom I hope are as fascinated and endeared towards them as I am.

It is an incredibly time-consuming occupation and I make sure that I put a great deal of care and attention into every frame I produce as I want the specimens to be preserved as beautifully as possible. If any species becomes extinct it is a tragic loss to mankind and of absolutely no use to me or anybody else.

I have been producing these frames for over six years now and the reactions I get from children and the public still makes it worthwhile, as they are seeing creatures which most people would never get the chance to see and would therefore not appreciate their true beauty or be able to take in the colossal size of mesmerising colours of these fantastic creatures, some of which have been the inspiration for many science fiction writers, designers and artists across the world.

It is only when you study them closely that you appreciate how fantastic they truly are.

If Mrs Schoon has any more reservations or questions she would like answered then I invite her to come and talk to me next time I am at the market.

Cassian Hamilton, The Bucks Bug Man Lyndhurst Close Downley High Wycombe