LABELLING AND PINNING HETEROPTERA. 29 



value in the future. When mounted, each pin should bear 

 below the insect a locality and date label and also the accession 

 number referring to the notebook data. Without such labels 

 a specimen is of little scientific value. I would at any time 

 rather have a label without a specimen than A specimen with- 

 out a label. 



Dried specimens can be relaxed sufficiently for mounting by 

 placing between thoroughly moistened layers of blotting paper 

 in a tightly closed box or other receptacle for 10 or 15 hours. 

 If the weather is very warm a drop or two of carbolic acid 

 or alcohol had best be sprinkled over the blotting paper. The 

 mold or grease on specimens can be removed by using a camel's 

 hair brush and alcohol to which a few drops of carbolic acid 

 have been added, or they can be immersed and soaked in 

 carbon tetrachloride. 



Pinning Specimens. — In pinning a specimen of Heteroptera 

 for the cabinet care should be taken to so locate and pass the 

 pin as to hold it firmly, avoid the breaking of legs or the spread- 

 ing of wings and, at the same time, not interfere with its 

 future study. By experience I have learned that this is best 

 clone by passing the pin through the basal third of pronotum, 

 inclining the point slightly backward so that it will pass 

 through the meso- or metasternum and between the coxae, 

 thereby holding the specimen rigidly in place. A No. 1 or 2 

 standard insect pin is sufficiently large for most of the true 

 bugs. 



The smaller species of Heteroptera, including most Lygaeidae 

 and Miridae, through which a No. 1 pin cannot be passed with- 

 out injury, should be mounted, as is the 

 beetle in fig. 5, with transparent glue or 

 shellac on the tip of a small narrow tri- 

 angular card or point through the base of 

 which a pin has been run. Only a very 

 small amount of the glue is necessary, it 

 being most readily applied to the card with 

 , the tip of a wooden toothpick. The legs 



Fig. a. Showing method ^ r 



of gluing an insect on a should be carefully spread before mount- 

 paper point. J ^ 



(After Bank. i. j n g anc j ^he body then pressed down firmly 



on the glued card, which should be placed at right angles on the 

 left side of the pin with the head of the insect away from the 

 person. The points can, with a little practice, easily be cut by 

 a small pair of scissors from a strip of heavy drawing paper 



