PRESERVING INSECTS 



17 



Fkj. 20 Mothsi)read on paste- 

 board box (original). 



results but the setting board is preferred l)y many. In spreading but- 

 terflies and moths the greatest care must be exercised not to rub off their 

 scales- Members of the bee and wasp family, 

 dragon flies and others are more valuable after 

 spreading and should be so treated when possi- 

 ble. 



Relaxing insects. From one cause or an- 

 other it frequently occurs that insects become 

 dry and brittle before they can be permanently 

 arranged. In this condition no spreading is 

 possible without serious breakage. If the 

 specimens are put on paper or a piece of cork 

 in a closed jar with moistened sand or a damp 

 sponge and allowed to remain from a day, in 

 the case of very small insects, to several days 

 for the larger forms, they can be spread very well. The specimens 

 should not be left in the jar too long or they may be spoiled by mold. 

 A few drops of carbolic acid will aid in preventing fungus growths. 



Denton's tablet. A pretty way of mounting butterflies and moths, 

 specially for display, is in Denton's tablets, which are blocks of plaster of 

 paris with a depression for the body of the insect and with paper strips 

 for hermetically sealing the glass covers. As the glass rests upon the 

 wings, they are held perfectly flat and the cover affords protection from 

 dust and museum pests. Specimens thus mounted are said to be less 

 affected by exposure to light. The tablets are sold at a moderate price 

 and directions are supplied with each lot. 



Treatment of small insects. ' Many insects are too small to be 

 mounted, even on the most slender long pins. One of the easiest ways 

 of caring for r^inute specimens is to mount them on card points, which 

 are triangular pieces of card, cut either with scissors or with a punch 

 designed for the purpose. An insect pin is thrust through the base of the 

 card point and the specimen attached to its extremity with a little shellac 

 or gum. Or a fine pin may be taken, its head removed, the pin bent to 

 a right angle, the larger end twisted with pliers tightly around a stouter 

 pin near its point and pushed farther up on the supporting pin, and the 

 specimen impaled on the upturned point of the smaller pin. Another 

 way of accomplishing the same end is by cutting off the larger portion Of 

 the smaller pin and thrusting the point through a piece of cardboard or 

 firm blotting paper, which in turn is mounted in a similar manner on a 



