12 



AMERICAN MUSEUM GUIDE LEAFLETS 



it will be very dangerous. It is always well to have a few narrow 

 strips of loose absorbent paper in the bottle. They prevent injury 

 to the insects by shaking and will keep the l^ottle dry as they can 

 be frequently changed. As ordinarily made, a bottle should be 

 allowed to ripen for several days before using. If wanted at once, 

 put a few drops of vinegar or a pinch of Vjoracic acid powder 

 with the cyanide. Collectors of delicate moths and butterflies fre- 

 quently put a few drops of ether or chloroform in their cyanide 

 bottles before starting out. This is to quiet the insects at once, for 

 the cyanide sometimes kills slowly. Experience will teach the col- 

 lector that some insects die very slowly and revive after apparent 

 death. On the other hand ether and chloroform make insects brittle 

 and too long an exposure to cyanide fumes changes the color of some 

 insects. 



Practically all beetles and dragon flies, together with, dull colored 

 hairless insects of other orders, can be killed in alcohol and kept there 

 indefinitely — 50% is strong enough for kiUing and 70% for preserving. 

 Higher grades make them brittle. No fly, bee, butterfly, moth or 

 any green insect other than those previously mentioned should be 



,\,/ 



Figure G. The black dots shov/ where the pin should be inserted. 



put in alcohol. In an emergency, kerosene, gasoline or benzine put 

 on the thorax will kill and give satisfactory specimens. The thorax is 

 the part of the body which bears the wings and legs. Insects breathe 

 through holes in it and in the abdomen ; not through the head. Pounded 

 laurel leaves and peach pits make a weak killing agent, and butterflies 

 and moths may be killed by carefully but firmly pinching the thorax 

 between the thumb and finger, one on each side. In fact manj^ collec- 

 tors of these insects pinch their captures before taking them out of the 

 net. This stops their injuring themselves by thrashing about. 



