Best place to order mounted/unmounted beetles???

[keqwow]

Anyone have a really good place to order various species of mounted or unmounted beetles??? Good prices etc????

 

[8 legged freak]

ebay

vincent

 

[Peter_Parker]

You can try insect-sale.com. They have a big selection and easy shopping cart. eBay is a good choice too, though.

 

[lucanidae]

Me! I'm in the same city as you and I frame beetles and butterflies. I also have some unmounted, how many are you looking to buy? Email me at edd23@cornell.edu

 

[psionix]

godofinsects.com has tons of Coleoptera but i don't know how competitive their prices are...

 

[Peter_Parker]

godofinsects.com has tons of Coleoptera but i don't know how competitive their prices are...

Not very. They have some nice specimens, but for their prices you might as well buy or catch a living one and pin it yourself!:wall:

 

[Curry]

There are always people on ebay selling them. I just bought two sets of 50 and 100 mixed beetles for under 100 bucks. If your looking for mounted ones, I just ordered some new glass/wood frames and will be doing some new mounts (no more riker mounts). You can also check out www.insectaculture.com

 

[Scolopendra55]

I have personally ordered from BeetlesAndBones.com several times. Very good quality but things can be somewhat pricey.

 

[Curry]

That reminds me, becareful with places that have prices too good to be true. Sometimes you will get specimens that ARE NOT A1 quality... Especially in bulk orders.

 

[Goliath]

My friend mounts bugs, his site is http://www.bugsbynature.com/.
Mike

 

[Alakdan]

Does anyone here know (and is willing to share) how to preserve and mount dead beetles?

Feel free to direct me to a site that gives instructions.

 

[keqwow]

Dead beetles.....first they will need to be softened so you can work with them....a jar or plastic encloser with a tight fitting lid will work. Layer the bottom with some paper towels that are damp to the point of not dripping...for good measure you can add a few drops of alcohol to prevent mold from growing. Then you put down a layer of wax paper over the top of that and lay your beetle on top of the wax paper. Close up the encloser and wait for a couple of days (depending on the size of the beetle). Basically you are waiting for the beetle so soak up the moisture to soften it up allowing you to move the legs or wings around without snapping them off. Once the beetle is softened up, you have the whole process of pinning and labeling. This is also when you position th legs, antennae, wings, etc. There is a proper procedure for this as well. Once you are done with all of this...you need to store them in a case of some kind with a tight fitting lid. You will also want to keep some mothballs in the case with the insect collection or else you will get dermistid beetles eating your collection. You can do a search on the web for more specific details on all of this, but I suggest you purchase a book called "How to Make an Insect Collection." It covers everything I said above in greater detail, as well as going into proper techniques for other insects as well. Here is a link:
http://www.wardsci.com/product.asp_Q_pn_E_IG0011377_A_How+to+Make+an+Insect+Collection,+2nd+edition

 

[Curry]

Keqwow is correct. Though you don't really need a book to learn the correct procedure, I've been doing it for 2 years and learned without a book. I did buy a few recently and it said the exact same things.

One thing about softening. If you have boiling water or really hot water, you wont need to wait a few days to soften the insect. I've used this technique and never had any problems or long term problems.

Here are a few sites you can check out that will show you proper data labeling techniques and how to correctly pin the specimen.

If you want to preserve beetle larvae or any soft bodied insect you need vials or jars with airtight lids and 70%isopropyl alcohol. I believe 85% ethyl alcohol works as well.

1. http://www.extension.umn.edu/distribution/youthdevelopment/DA6892.html

2. http://www.nfi.org.za/inverts/Collect/preserving.html

3. http://www.inquiry.net/outdoor/autumn/taxidermy/insects.htm

4. http://www.ces.ncsu.edu/depts/ent/notes/4H/insect_pinning4a.html

5. http://www.madsci.org/posts/archives/oct2000/970891832.Zo.r.html

6. http://www.ento.csiro.au/education/preserving.html (types of insects and the best way to preserve each... very good resource)

 

[Alakdan]

Thanks! I'm already excited. We have a lot of beetles available during the month of May. So I guess it's the perfect time to practice.

 

[Curry]

Thanks! I'm already excited. We have a lot of beetles available during the month of May. So I guess it's the perfect time to practice.

Have fun! Don't forget to post up some pics!