Triangle half wing pin10/27/2022 I like to place a small piece of mesh screen underneath so that it does not sit directly on the paper towel. Place your butterfly or moth on top of this layer (insects will be very fragile, so handle with care). Squeeze out excess liquid so that the paper towel is damp but not soaking wet and place in a single layer on the bottom of your container. To create an insect relaxing chamber: Moisten a paper towel with equal parts rubbing alcohol (to prevent mold) and water. You can do so by creating a relaxing chamber for them using a tight sealing container (I use an old food storage container with a lid) and paper towels. If your specimens are dried out and brittle, you will need to rehydrate them prior to pinning them. You can skip this step if your collected specimens are fresh and still pliable. #Triangle half wing pin how to#Instructions for pinning and preserving butterflies and Moths Step 1: How to relax dried insects I’d like to build a custom one in the future but for now this one works well. – display box: I’m currently using this one with a piece of foam board as a backing inside. – wax paper: cut into narrow strips, you’ll be using these to hold the wings in place as they dry. Here are some recommendations ( one - two - three - four) I typically use a #2 pin for butterflies and moths. – insect pins: come in a variety of sizes, the most common being size #2 and #3. – insect pinning forceps: I recommend using a pair of these because butterflies and moths are fragile and you’ll want to minimize handling I’ve used both wood and styrofoam ones and honestly prefer the cheap styrofoam ones, like the one linked. – insect spreading board: the board you’ll be using as a base. Specimens that are pinned and properly dried can be kept for an indefinite amount of time if they are properly stored. They will then need to be relaxed before pinning. If you don’t have time to pin your butterfly or moth immediately, they can be stored temporarily in a folded up triangle made of parchment paper with their wings folded together. Since butterflies and moths have wings that need to be supported, you will also need a spreading board that you will use to position them on top of and they will be kept there until they dry. E keeps insects as pets (like his beloved grasshopper) and we raise and release monarchs so that aspect is important to us! You can find insects everywhere, you’ll just need to keep an eye out for them when you’re on your nature walks or in your back yard! To pin them, you’ll be using entomological pins which come in a range of sizes (the most common size being #2 and #3) and I recommend using insect pins made of stainless steel so that they do not rust. The bugs in our bug box are all specimens that we personally collected ourselves that have died of natural causes- we don’t collect/kill live insects to keep as specimens. I have a bit of experience pinning a variety of different insects, but am most familiar with butterflies and moths, so that’s what I’ll be sharing today. They’re a great resource for his nature studies and I’ve really enjoyed refining my process of preserving specimens over the past couple of years. We love finding new specimens to add to Elliot’s nature collection.
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