# My Buggy Collection (pics)



## Kruggar (Jun 28, 2011)

So last summer, I started an insect collection and thought it was time I shared with all of you. All these insects were caught by me (save the E, gracilicornis beetle in center), posed and pinned by me. The t molts and scorpion (i have some smaller ones too) are from AB folks who normally toss them. Most of the butterflies are actually roadkill, relaxed and posed.

I have a rule when it comes to collecting, I don't need any more then 2 or each specimen, unless they try to chomp me. I'm not out to kill every bug i see, but it makes drawing them 1 million times easier .

The Scorpion was given to me dead, and I cleaned and posed it myself, the bottom right 3 still need to be sorted and framed. 






My beetles and true bugs, still need a giant water beetle  :






The minute specimens, each square is 1cm x 1cm






My favourites, unsorted, before bughunting I had never even seen a clearwing moth, a pigeon horntail, a robber fly, or that black scarab (?):












These are the ones that tried to chomp me, never knew they came as big as left:





I should add, these aren't perfectly lined up like they used to be, I dropped the box that the collection was in and everything spun on its pin  a very bad day, many losses.


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## Meecht (Jun 28, 2011)

Awesome collection!  Puts all those high school biology bug collections to shame!

How do you preserve them?


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## BQC123 (Jun 28, 2011)

Very nice. I'm hoping my son gets into it so we can work on our own collection.


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## Kruggar (Jun 28, 2011)

i use zero preserving agents, its actually quite easy. I got a lot of info from this guy: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=62pOS0mM-ww he's got quite a few vids.
and for dragonflies: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=77M0OjmjDU4&feature=related
--> the acetone really does preserve colour, but I stopped going for dragonflies, only needed a few.

I use styrofoam blocks and insert the (silk) pin through the correct part, pinning the bug tight against the block, then with other pins hold the legs/wings/antennae in place (not stabbing through) leave until dry, remove all pins but the main one, pie 

I use silk pins, they are the finest, longest pins before actually buying the $0.50-$3.00 each insect preserving pins (some come in 10k gold). And i use the cheap dollar store wooden cigar boxes lined with foamcore/cardboard, any box will do. I used to keep a chunk of mothball in there with them to deter parasites or anything that wants to nibble them, but I've never had any problems with that so i got rid of their stink!

If you start collecting be careful, there are many insects that are protected, eg, monarchs, bees. and there are places that you aren't allowed to remove any sort of wildlife. 

have fun, any questions? i'd be glad to answer


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## myrmecophile (Jun 28, 2011)

Off to a good start but get some proper pins. Those pins you are using will in the long run cause all sorts of problems. Also the specimens are of no value with collecting data. Label them. Also no reason to pin those larger beetles where you did, they should all be pinned thru the right elytra.


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## Kruggar (Jun 28, 2011)

I'm not too concerned, I'm only using them for illustration references, and I know almost all the species by common name.


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## Toogledoo (Jun 28, 2011)

This is pretty cool. Always been a fan of bug collections.


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## myrmecophile (Jun 28, 2011)

That's a shame. There is always a chance that something in that collection would be of scientific value if it only had collection data. Without data it is just killing bugs to kill bugs.


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## ZephAmp (Jun 29, 2011)

... Where are the roaches?


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## Tim St. (Jun 29, 2011)

Kruggar said:


> My beetles and true bugs, still need a giant water beetle


I just seen one a few nights ago in the Sobys parking lot, i see 2-3 every summer, ill keep the next one for you.


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## Kruggar (Jun 29, 2011)

LRG said:


> I just seen one a few nights ago in the Sobys parking lot, i see 2-3 every summer, ill keep the next one for you.


ooooo please do. I've never actually seen one, but i hear people do all the time, especially in parking lots


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## Kruggar (Jun 30, 2011)

:wall: I completely forget to add my cardboard boxes of molts! :wall:
enjoy! These were mailed to me by several folks on AB, many had to be sorted and legs glued back on at almost every joint. The Amblypygi aren't molts, but dried specimens. very happy to get them.


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## Kruggar (Jul 14, 2011)

I finally got those cases filled that have been laying around forever. what ya'll think?


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## JC (Jul 14, 2011)

Wow! Inspiring to say the least!


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## khil (Jul 14, 2011)

Amazing thanks for the share! that T on the bottom isn't full sized, is it?? from what I can tell Ts are a lot bigger than even those huge beetles


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## Kruggar (Jul 14, 2011)

I'm sad to say that now I wan't more display cases. I think they look so much better hung up on the wall then in a stack of cigar boxes 
It's a G. pulchra molt i believe, so it's obviously not full grown. I don't know the scorpion, but that is also a molt. The wingspan on that beetle is 6", so it might be a little misleading too. 

Thanks for the complements, If anyone wants to mail me some molts or dead bugs I'd be more then welcome to except.


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## InsectChick (Jul 14, 2011)

You have a fantastic collection!


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## Kruggar (Jul 15, 2011)

myrmecophile said:


> That's a shame. There is always a chance that something in that collection would be of scientific value if it only had collection data. Without data it is just killing bugs to kill bugs.


hmm I missed this comment. I have to say that one can kill bugs and have them be extremely useful without serving the greater scientific good. If it helps all of the ones I caught came from Rosemont Ontario, Summer of 2009. I am no species expert but honestly If I wrote the same thing on every pin i'd be kind of a waste of time. I also find the papers underneath extremely distracting when I go to draw them. These bugs are reference and gorgeous decoration and thats all _I_ want them to be .


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## Travis K (Jul 15, 2011)

Very nice.  I like them.:clap:


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## MB623 (Jul 15, 2011)

Kruggar said:


> hmm I missed this comment. I have to say that one can kill bugs and have them be extremely useful without serving the greater scientific good. If it helps all of the ones I caught came from Rosemont Ontario, Summer of 2009. I am no species expert but honestly If I wrote the same thing on every pin i'd be kind of a waste of time. I also find the papers underneath extremely distracting when I go to draw them. These bugs are reference and gorgeous decoration and thats all _I_ want them to be .


Awesome collection. Would love to see a drawing of any of them.


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## asher (Jul 15, 2011)

myrmecophile said:


> Also the specimens are of no value with collecting data. Label them.


This. You've obviously gone to a lot of effort and your collections look fantastic, but without labels they're no use scientifically. What's going to happen when you need to get rid of them (through getting bored of them, death, etc)? Much better to bequest them to a museum than to chuck them. And quite frankly if you're killing insects just to use as a decoration it seems a bit of a waste. It's not much extra effort to write some simple labels, and it really is worth the small amount of extra effort.


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## Dravensmom (Jul 16, 2011)

Beautiful collection! :clap:


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## Kruggar (Jul 17, 2011)

MB623 said:


> Awesome collection. Would love to see a drawing of any of them.


Soon, the upcoming website has been my everest.


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## Kruggar (Jul 21, 2011)

So I caved and instead of getting my website off and running I just used a generic blog site. You can find it here: http://richardstarrett.posterous.com/


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