BULLETIN 39, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM. [74] 



near the locality label; a second row is then pinned and pushed near 

 the first row, and the same process continued with the third row and 

 so on. A single pin will thus bear five or six rows, and in giving away 

 or sending away specimens the lowest row is taken from the pin and 

 repinned for mailing. The accompanying figure (Fig. 103) illustrates 

 the mounting of a moderate-sized species in rows of two specimens 

 each. This method of mounting duplicates may be adopted not only 

 for Coleoptera, but also for Heteroptera, Homoptera (excepting 

 Aphididre and allied families), smaller Orthoptera, and Hymenoptera. 

 It is, however, im practicable for Lepidoptera, Diptera, and most ISTeu- 

 roptera. 



Temporary Storage of Specimens. If the entomologist is prevented 

 from mounting his captures soon after returning from an expedition, or 

 if, on extended collecting trips, time does not offer for this purpose, 

 specimens of almost all orders except the Lepidoptera, Orthoptera, and 

 Neuroptera may be placed in a small, tightly closing pill box, care being 

 taken to keep the larger specimens apart from the small ones. In this 

 way specimens will keep for an indefinite period, provided they are 

 properly packed. In the case of the traveling collector, where the 

 material is to be carried from point to point at great risk of breaking, 

 specimens should be packed very carefully to prevent any shaking 

 or rattling about in the boxes. This may be done by placing a round 

 piece of soft paper 011 the top of the specimens in the pill box. This 

 paper should be gently pressed down and the empty space above filled 

 with other layers of paper or with cotton. The packing of specimens 

 between cotton is not recommended, as it is a difficult and tedious task 

 to afterwards free them from the adhering fibers. Layers of soft paper 

 or, yet better, velvet, are preferable. 



Envelopes for Lepidoptera, etc. On an extended trip, it will be found 

 impracticable to mount and prepare insects requiring cumbersome appa- 

 ratus for spreading, as Lepidoptera or Neuroptera, and a very excellent 

 plan consists in folding the wings of the k 



insect so that the lower surfaces come to- 

 gether and then placing it in a triangu- 

 lar envelope, as shown in the accompay- 

 ing illustration. The collector should be 

 provided with a quantity of paper of the 

 requisite dimensions for making these en- 

 velopes, and specimens, as they are taken 

 from the collecting bottle, may be rapidly 

 inclosed in them, labeled, and packed 

 awav in a tight Avooden (not tin) box ^ 



. . PIG. 104. Method of preserving Diurnal 



containing a supply ot naphthaline, the Lepidoptera in paper envelopes. (Afr 



specimens thus occupying the minimum 



of space. Specimens secured in this way may be kept without further 



manipulation indefinitely or until time is found to relax and set them. 



