Collecting and Displaying Insects
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Killing the specimen ...
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| Most insects can be killed with a "killing jar".
In the case of butterflies and moths however, gently squeezing the thorax
of the butterfly between your fingers while it is still in your
butterfly net works good. A problem with squeezing the thorax is that
it can damage the specimen and make it difficult to spread. I prefer to
inject the thorax with acetone using a relaxing syringe. This
kills the specimen immediately and minimizes damage. The butterfly/moth
can be transferred to an envelope where it can be kept until
transferring it to storage. |
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Storing specimens which you have
collected...
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| Butterflies can be kept in
their envelope and transferred straight to the freezer. Other insects
can be stored in an airtight container like a jar and stored in a
freezer. I like to use freezer storage because it lets me avoid having
to use a relaxing chamber later, when I am ready to mount the specimen.
Eventually the specimen will dehydrate even in a freezer and other
relaxing methods must be used. |
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The Relaxing Chamber...
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Prior
to "pinning" the specimens, they must be "relaxed". Fresh specimens are
usually relaxed already if you spread them right away. If you
store them for spreading later, or if you have purchased dried specimens, they will
need to be relaxed. One method is using a relaxing chamber. A relaxing
chamber is a container which has a very high humidity. The relaxing
chamber would consist of the following:
- A plastic (shoe box sized) box, with a
top which fits tightly onto the lower portion...
- A sponge which is wetted, and located
on the bottom of the plastic box...
- A wire mesh covering the sponge so
that the butterflies do not actually get wet. Butterflies which get wet
can get discolored.
- A paper towel covering the wire
mesh...
- A "moth ball" (one is enough), which
is kept inside the Relaxing Jar to keep fungi and molds from growing
inside...
- A wetted paper towel on the underside
of the top of the box...
Specimens which are placed inside this
relaxing chamber become pliable, and can be pinned without damaging the
parts of the butterfly
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The relaxing syringe...
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| I
prefer to use a relaxing
syringe to relax my specimens. Fill a 1ml or ½ ml
syringe with warm water. Then inject the warm water in the butterfly or
moth in the thorax. For large beetles I inject between the abdominal
segments close to the thorax since the thick exoskeleton can damage my
needle. |
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Pinning the specimen...
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There
are a number of sizes of pins (from 00 to 7) which are used in the
process of "pinning" insects. I
like Monarch pins the
best, but Asta ento pins are a less expensive alternative for the
beginner or student. All of these pins are available through
Insects4sale.com. on our supply page.
Grasp the insect between the thumb and
forefinger or lay it on a styrofoam pad and press the pin gently but
firmly just through exoskeleton. Pause and examine the angle of the
pin. Will it poke through at a critical or inconvenient point on the
insect's bottom? Will the insect be pinned at an unusual angle? If so,
pull the pin back out slightly and reposition for the final push
through. Be careful not to enlarge entry pin holes or to create too
many holes. When completed examine the specimen again for desired
pinning effect. Be careful not to prick fingers.
Propor pin positioning is very important. Insects are not the same. Where a pin
is inserted into the insect body may affect or damage a leg on the
other side of the insect's body Use the illustration to the
right as a guide for where to insert pins in the various types of
insects.
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Butterfly mounting/spreading board...
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| A mounting/spreading
board can be made of a number of different materials. The one
I use is made of wood with balsa pinning surfaces The
mounting board needs a grove down the center which is about 3/8 inch
across, and into which the body of the butterfly can sit while you are
working on the wings.. The grove needs to be deep enough so that there
is room for the pin so that the specimen can dry with the pin in the
proper position. The mounting board should have about 150 degrees of
angle from one surface to the other. A quality mounting board can be
purchased from insects4sale.com
on our supply page. |
Spreading the specimen...
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With the use of some well-placed pins
and thin paper strips, the butterflies wings can be held down and in
the proper position to reduces movement until the insect has dried. Specimens
are best spread when they are freshly caught. Once specimens
have been spread and allowed to dry place them immediately into the
collection to avoid accidents. Let the butterfly dry for at least 5
days before removing from the spreading board.
With other insects such as beetles, bugs, bees, wasps etc. I
like to position them on a piece of closed cell foam like styrofoam.
The pins penitrate the foam sheet easily and let me position the legs,
antennae, head, and body where I want them.
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Tweezers and other equipment...
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| You will also need a good quality pair of
spade tipped tweezers so you handle the specimen while you are pinning
it. |
Maintaining your collection...
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Inside the insect display box you
should place flakes of moth balls. This will discourage future
infestations. I like to crush the mothmalls and put them into a very
small vile with tiny holes in the lid. I secure the vile to the inside
lower corner of the display box.
Though mothballs are excellent for keeping out pests that would destroy
your specimens, they do not kill pests already infested. You can tell a
specimen is infested when ia small pile of fraz shows up under the
specimen. In this case I remove the specimen and place it in the
freezer for several days. This seems to kill the pests and I return the
specimen to its display.. |
