The imm umuim: 



A Penny Weekly Magazine of Natural History. 



No. 116. JANUAEY 28th, 1882. Vol. 3. 



GREASE. 



ONE of the most annoying things 

 the entomologist has to deal with 

 is grease. How often it happens that 

 we see an otherwise beautiful series 

 spoiled by specimens that are either 

 saturated with grease or bear evident 

 marks of it having been removed by 

 some means or other. Sometimes an 

 insect becomes so greasy that it runs 

 down the pin and spreads over the 

 paper lining of the drawer, making an 

 unsightly blotch that can only be got 

 rid of by taking out the old paper and 

 relining it There are several methods 

 by which grease may be removed more 

 or less effectually. Mr. Stainton's in- 

 structions given twenty years ago cannot 

 perhaps be improved upon. " Place it 

 (the greasy specimen) on a piece of 

 cork previously fastened at the bottom 

 of a shallow tin or jam-pot ; pour in cam- 

 phine or Benzine collas until the insect 

 is covered, and let it remain for twelve 

 hours. Then take out the insect, place 

 it upon blotting-paper for a few minutes 

 in order that the superfluous moisture 

 may be absorbed ; transfer it to the 

 setting boards, and cover it thickly with 

 pipe clay scraped to powder or with 

 magnesia. In a day or two the powder 



may be blown off, and any adhering 

 particles removed with a camel-hair 

 pencil, and the insect will be as fresh- 

 looking as at first." — Ent. Weekly Int., 

 April '1^, 1860. We cannot say we 

 have ever cured an insect by this means 

 that was as fresh-looking after the pro- 

 cess as it was before it became greasy. 

 The hairs on the abdomen are apt to 

 clot together and cannot well be separ- 

 ated, and the specimen has a draggled^ 

 seedy look that is not improving. 

 Nevertheless, it is a great deal better 

 than when greasy, and the cure may be 

 adopted with advantage with all insects 

 sufficiently rare to be difficult to replace. 

 But with common species we would 

 advise our young readers to obtain fresh 

 specimens rather than have them in the 

 state we describe. Prevention, however, 

 is better than cure. It is better to 

 prevent grease than to cure it, besides 

 being much easier. The moths that 

 are most subject to grease are those 

 whose larvge feed internally or below 

 the surface of the ground. If you want 

 an insect that is safe to grease, let us 

 recommend to you the male of H, 

 humuli, the larvae of which feed under- 

 ground on various roots. G. flavago, 

 too, the larvae of which live in the stems 



