Why specimens are preserved?

• Taxonomic reasons.
• Detailed examination.
• Morphological study of particular animal as each
and every animal can’t be in researcher’s vicinity.
• Zoological museum collection.
STEPS FOR SPECIMEN PRESERVATION

•Killing and relaxing

• Fixation
• Storage
 Ethyl alcohol (for invertebrates)
• The better solution for long term storage of invertebrate specimens
is in an 80% solution of ethyl alcohol.
• Ethyl alcohol can be found in the painting supplies. It is labeled
as “denatured alcohol”.
INVERTEBRATE SPECIMEN
PRESERVATION
• The easiest way to preserve these animal is to use alcohol.
• One should be aware of which kind of alcohol they are using as
each animal requires a different concentration for preservation.
• Most invertebrates, however, will be kept in bottles, and sets of
tubes or jars for preservation.
 Arthropods
• Easy to process as killed immediately and stored in alcohol.
•The larger arthropods (especially those with hard exoskeleton)
sometimes need to be injected with 10% formalin to prevent from
rotting.
• Industrial alcohol is used for most arthropods. Insects, crustaceans
and arachnids can be simply dropped into alcohol for immediately
preservation.
• It is usually not needed to relax arthropods for liquid preservation.
 Pin Placement

Large insects are pinned using number 3 pins which are

inserted through the upper body surface.
 The pin is positioned at right angles to the body.
 Only a quarter of the pin's length should remain above the
insect.
The positioning of the pin depends on the type of insect:
Beetles (Order Coleoptera)
pin through right elytra.

Bugs (Order Hemiptera)

•pin through the center of scutellum, the triangular shaped structure in the
center of the upper surface of wings.
Butterflies and moths (Order Lepidoptera)
•pin through the center of the thorax between the wings. The wings are
displayed on both sides of the body.
All other Orders
• pin through the thorax to the right of center.
• Pinning down the center of the insect is usually avoided because you
might destroy useful identification features.
• Inserting the pin off to one side may also destroy useful features, but
they will still be visible on the other side.
 Setting wings
1. Dragonflies and Damselflies (Order Odonata) and Wasps
and Bees (Order Hymenoptera)
Both pairs of wings are set.

2. With dragonflies and damselfies (Order Odonata), move the

front edges of the hind wings so that they are at right angles to
the body; set the fore wings just a little in front of the hind
wings.
 Flies (Order Diptera)

 have only one pair of wings

 set wings with the front edges at 45° to the body.
 How to pin and set a butterfly

Push the pin through the centre of the thorax and into the
setting board until the underside of the wings rest on top of the
board.
Pin strips of tracing paper at the top edge of the board, one
strip over each wing.
Move the fore wing so the back edge it is at right angles to the
body.
Tuck the front edge of the hind wing under the fore wing
leaving a small V.
With the wings in position, pull each paper strip tight and pin
around the edges of the wing, not through them.
The abdomen is supported with a V of pins.
Dry Preservation (Pinning)
 Grasshoppers and crickets (Order) Orthoptera

Use the same procedure as for butterflies, but move the hind
wing so that it is at right angles to the body.
Set the fore wings so that they are just a little in front of the
hind wings.
Set the large hind legs of grasshoppers in a jumping
position, using pins to hold the leg. Specimens will take from
one to three weeks to dry, depending on their size.
 PRECAUTIONARY MEASURES
• Do not crowd living animals in small containers, this will results
in damage to their appendages.
• Features important in the taxonomic study of insects, are easily
damaged with contact even after preservation.