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I'm currently a college student studying biology at LSU but I have always had a keen interest in insects and their biology. I have been collecting insects since high school and found that it is an extremely wonderful hobby. It takes me into the wilderness where I get to enjoy the outdoors and breath fresh air. I also get a lot of exercise as well while trying to chase after the faster insects (like dragonflies). The hobby had also sparked an interest in travel where I collect insects any place and every place I go. In creating this page, I hope to encourage everyone else to get out there and to enjoy chasing insects and hopefully in the process, become more familiar with your natural surroundings and appreciate all the beauty that nature has to offer. Enjoy bug hunting!

EQUIPMENT

E  Q  U  I  P  M  E  N  T

These are my nets and had been with me through many collecting trips. The top is a 15" diameter and 3' handle dual sweeping-aerial net. The bottom is the folding net and is very useful for travel. It comes with handle extensions to any preferred length and great for travel!

You can purchase these nets from a biological supply company such as Bioquip for a relatively decent price or you can inexpensively make the net yourself. All you need is a thick dowel rod, a strong wire, and some netting fabric. Many insect guide books will have an introductory section on how to make a net. Each type of net and material to use are described below.

Sweeping Net: You will need a sweeping net to sweep the grass, trees, and bushes. This net takes a lot of damage from coming into forceful contact with vegetation so it should be made with a tough netting material and the brim should be well hemmed with a tough material to prevent wearing.

Aerial Net: You will this lightweight net to catch fast fliers such as butterflies, moths, dragonflies, wasps, etc, etc...The aerial net is lighter and must be made with a light and fabric. This will help you to locate the specimen inside you net which will help with flipping the insects into the jar so you don't get stung (by wasps and kin).   The rim of this net should also be hemmed.

Aquatic Net: An aquatic net is used to sweep aquatic vegetation and mud to find aquatic insects. The best netting material is some type of screen. The rim should be mage with a strong wire. Depends on the collector's preference, the net should be about 12-15" in diameter and the handle should be about 3-5 feet. The net that I use (top) is 15" diameter and 3 feet in handle length. You can order nets that are made up of two sections. The top is durable enough for sweeping and the bottom will allow the air to escape to catch faster insects. It is very valuable to have this dual net in the field!

I made this killing jar from a salsa jar. It had been with me through many trips and still works great.

Aka a "killjar". As the name indicates, these jars are used to kill the insects you've captured. You can easily obtain these jars from the kitchen. Any kind of wide mouthed jar (such as pickle or salsa) will do. Usually, a layer of plaster is poured on the bottom of the jar and the dried platter is saturated with a liquid chemical. Any kind of cyanide can be used but they can be very dangerous and I would strongly discourage it's use in killing jars. I prefer less toxic and dangerous chemicals such as ethyl acetate or even rubbing alcohol. If you don't want to bother with the plaster, just put a layer of paper towel on the bottom of the jar and it should work fine. But the plaster is definitely a plus and works marvelously. Just remember not to over soak the plaster or towel. It should only be moistened. The jar should not be used for any other purposes.

If you don't like to play with chemicals, another alternative is to put the insects in the freezer for a couple of hours and most will be killed (although I have encountered springtime insects that comes back to life!) The only disadvantage with this is that you must carry other collecting containers in the field to separate out the ones that may destroy others.

It is very important that you use the same killing jar for butterflies and moths as other insects. Scales will rub off and make the rest of your specimens very undesirable. Use a separate jar for them.

Here you can see a variety of pins. The sizes shown here are 00, 1, and 7. 

After returning from the field with your specimens, you will need to pin them. Pinning will prevent your specimen from being damaged and it is the preferred way of storing your specimens. Insect pins are available for a decent price from many biological supply company. Pin numbers range from 000, 00, 0, 1, 2...7. Number 000 is reserved for very small insects, although it may just be best to point your smaller specimens. I like using pins 0, 1, 2, 7 and very seldom 00. Size 7 is reserved for very large insects. If you don't have access to these pins, you can use clothespins instead. They are not satisfactory for pinning insects because they'd rust and the fact that they're too large and short for proper mounting. You may use them for practice but good insect pins are very good investments. They cost about $6.00 per 100 pins (and cheaper in bulk). Insects that are too small to be pinned (i.e.. you'd spit the insect in two when you try pinning it) should be mounted on paper points. They can be made out of any type of thick paper such as index cards or art canvas.

COLLECTING

C  O  L  L  E  C  T  I  N  G

Now that you've gotten all the necessary equipments for collecting insects, it's time to head out to the fields. What you will need is something to hold your killing jar and a few containers to keep your insects in after they are killed. On a warm day, you can go out to a field, park, railroad tracks, pond, and even your own backyard and you are sure to find some type of insects to collect. It depends on what you want to collect that day. Do you want to try for smaller insects hidden in vegetation or do you just want to look around for something that flies by? That will help you to decide which net to bring. As you can see, my dual net is indispensable because I usually will sweep vegetation and collect flying insects all on the same trip. Collect the specimen and slip them into the killing jar. You should keep scaled insects (such as moths and butterflies) in a different jar since their scales rubs off and it ruins the other specimens. From experience, I know that beginners are excited about getting the biggest and best looking specimens. It takes them a while until to appreciate all sizes of insects. Until then, collect what ever you can and keep them in the freezer for later on. You will be very glad you did.

Insect Collecting Tips

Me and my friend Dmitry catching tiger beetles. A demonstration of netting.

Which way to swing your net all depends on the collectors preference. You will have to try it out in the field and decide for yourself which is best. However, what I like to do is with aerial net, swing at the specimen as fast and accurate as possible. Once the specimen is in, give the net a flip to make the bottom of the net fold over the rim. This will prevent your specimen from escaping temporarily. Some, however, are very cunning and could escape your net. Quickly take and seal the net with your hands. Be careful when working with things that can sting. Now the specimen can be slipped into the killing jar.

When using a sweeping net, sweep back and forth with the net fairly quickly and forcefully. If you don't knock a few leaves off, you're not doing it hard enough. Once there seems to be enough material in the net, give the net a strong sweep through the air to make everything fall to the bottom. Twist the net above the clump in the bottom and slip the killing jar into the net. Dump everything into the jar and seal it quickly. Do not sweep for a very long time because this is a forceful technique and you will damage your specimens if you don't remove them often. Remember, the best specimens are undamaged ones.

When the net had been sweeping in the water or water vegetations for a while, take the net to a clear place and pick out the insects. They might be hiding in the decayed matter that you swept up so be careful or you'll miss them. A pan of water usually will loosen up the vegetation to reveal the hidden insects. These can be dropped directly into the killing jar.

CURATION

C  U  R  A  T  I  O  N

Once the specimens are dead, you can then mount them. Remember to take them out as soon as they are dead. Leaving them in the jar too long will damage their color. Insects are usually mounted on the right side (when you look at it from behind).

Beetles - pin on the upper quadrant of the right wing (elytra)
Wasps, bees, and flies - pin to the right of the thorax, near the base of the wings.
Moths and butterflies - pin in the middle of the thorax; this is to balance out the insects for spreading their wings.
Grasshoppers - pin to the right of the thorax.
Dragonflies and Damselflies - are not usually pinned. They are kept in envelopes. However, I do pin and spread some of mine for display purposes.

Push the pin into the correct spot for the appropriate insect. Before pushing it through, look and make sure that it is perpendicular with the insect from all directions. The insect should lay in a horizontal position while the pin should go straight down vertically into the insect. Level your insects on a pinning block if you have one. Typically, the insect should rest 1/3 of the way from the top of the pin, the first label 1/2 of the pin and the second label 2/3 of the pin. One such dimension from the bottom of the pin is: 23mm, 12mm, and 7mm.

Insects too small to be pinned are mounted on points made with paper. Make triangular points out of a non-acid paper (such as artist canvas). The points should be only 7-10mm long and the width of the thickest end 2-3mm wide (see left for example). The point should be pinned through the thickest end and should go on the highest step of the pinning block (at the 23mm position). Many curators, including myself, like to bend the tips of the points to make it easier to attach the insect (see bottom left picture). Dip the tip of the pin into the glue (Elmer's or any clear drying glue) and touch the insects to the right side (see picture to the left). The insect should face forward and always must be pointed in this direction. For points, the label should read from left to right (see "Labels" section below).

The wings of butterflies and moths must be spread. To do this, you need a spreading board. It is made of some soft material, such as Styrofoam, that pins can go through. To make a simple one, cut a grove in the middle of the board so that the abdomen of the butterfly or moth fits into it (see bottom left picture). Pin through the middle of the thorax as described above and pin the whole thing into the middle of the grove on the board. Make sure that the wings lay flat on the flat surface of the board. Work with one side of the body at a time. Cut strips of paper about 1/8 in. wide and long enough to spread across the wings. I usually cut them to about 3 in. long. The wings are very delicate so handling them forceps will prevent them from being damaged. Use the tip of the forceps and very delicately push the wings up from behind the largest vein on the wing until the bottom of the forewing makes a right angle with the body. The hind wings are pulled up to meet the forewings. The wings are secured with the prepared strips of papers. Pin the strips down to hold the wings. Repeat with the other side. Make sure that the bottom of the forewings makes a straight line. In the case of larger moths like the Luna moth shown to the left, each wing is fastened in place with one strip of paper. NEVER PIN ON THE WINGS OF THE SPECIMENS!

Leave the mounted specimens to dry for about a week. When dried, remove the pins from the paper strips carefully and remove the specimen. Labels can be placed on at this time. This process can be quite difficult for beginners but with practice, you can perfectly mount a specimen. If done right, the final results can be very pleasing to the eyes.

Soft bodied insects and immatures are preserved in 80% ethanol in airtight vials.

Soft bodied insects are preferably preserved in alcohol to prevent them from shrinking. I use an 80% ethyl alcohol (grain alcohol). The solution is strong enough where the insects are preserved but not too dehydrated that they become brittle when handled. However, these are the days of DNA molecular work. If your specimens are intended for that purpose, they must be preserved in 100% ethanol. Rubbing alcohol is ok if you're desperate. Insects that should be "pickled": any larval insects (caterpillar, grubs, ect...), pupae, many neuropterans (lacewings, fishflies, mantisflies), trichopterans (caddisflies), aphids, collembolla, ect...

Insects that should NOT be pickled: moths and butterflies and small flies. This will cause the scales on the moth and butterflies to mass up and wings of small flies to fold on themselves, making identification a pain!

Labels are very important. Without them, your collection will not worth much in its scientific value. There are two types:

Locality labels should contain the date in which the insect is collected, the area where it was collected, and the name of the collector, and what substrate or method of collection was used. An example is show to the left. GPS coordinates are preferred if available. Labels should not exceed 10 x 20mm. I use Microsoft Word to type out my labels with Times New Roman font size 4.5pt with 4.5pt line spacing. That means you should not have more than 6 lines per label. Some people preferred doing two labels, which would reduce the size of label (therefore drawer space) but I prefer the one label method.

Name labels (determination labels) are usually bordered in black and contains the scientific name of the specimen, the person that identified the insect and year of identification. If space would allow, habitat and sex of the insect should be labeled also. Example:

Actias luna (female symbol)
Det. N. H. Nguyen, 2005

Labels are made out of non-acid special label paper (they are slightly thick). Mount the labels with the long axis with the long axis of the insect. If the insects that had been pinned through the body, pin the labels in the middle. If they are mounted on paper points, pin through the right side of the labels. Labels for pins should be as shown (top left).

        There is no need to "preserve" most of the insects. That is, they don't have to be dipped in liquids in order to keep them from rotting. They have an exoskeleton that will remain pretty well shaped after they are dried. The insects should be stored in a dry place away from the light. Moisture will cause fungus to grow and start rotting away your specimens and light will cause the color to fade slowly.

After you have worked so hard on your collection, you don't want anything to destroy it. You should not handle dried insects without softening them first. This process is called "relaxing". You can do this by placing your specimens in an airtight container filled with sand and moistened with water. The insect goes on a dry platform and the whole container is covered. Leave it there for about 12 hours or until it is softened enough to handle. If they are still too hard, return to the box immediately and wait for another 6 hours. Do not leave your insect in the box for more than 36 hours or fungus will start to grow. Remember to handle both dry and moist specimens with forceps.

Museum pests can cause a great amount of damage to your collection. Really good insect drawers (those with a tight fitting lid) can help to keep pests out of your collection. However, chemicals must be used to kill the insects and keep them out if you want to keep your collection in good conditions for years. You can just use a simple mothball in your storage box and add a new one when the ball had evaporated. I just hate the smell of chemical preservatives so I use good insect boxes to help reduce the need to use them.

Certain things are great in collections and says a lot about the biology of the insects if they are included. This will make your collection more valuable. Two examples are in the pictures. The wasp I raised by collecting the larval caterpillars. The wasp larva lives inside the caterpillar and eventually spin a cocoon inside the caterpillar. When the wasp emerged, I pointed both the wasp and the caterpillar/wasp cocoon. The picture to the right is of a pair of mating leaf beetles. They are also pointed. This sort of things provide highly valuable information on the life history of the insect and I highly recommend anyone collecting insects to include them into the collection.

FINAL WORDS

F  I  N  A  L    W  O  R  D  S

Nhu Nguyen
Xerantheum@aol.com