Collecting trips, tips, and pics.

[CustomNature]

Hey folks. I was just sitting here thinking that it would be sweet if we could start a thread that showcases our collecting trips, finds, and techniques. I know I'm not the only one here who goes out, so when I do tomorrow, I'm taking my digital camera and I'll post up some photos when I get back. I think it would be a good spot for the arachnocommunity to share some ideas and tips with each other. The traps that I use are light traps, pit-fall traps, beat sheets, sweep nets, and sugaring. If anyone hasn't heard of, or doesnt know about, these techniques then post up a reply and I'd be happy to describe them and how I use them. Like I said, I'll be posting some pics late tomorrow evening when I get back, but if anyone has some pics of their finds or trips or anything, the feel free to beat me to it. The idea for this kind of thread will either take off, or go down in burning flames; but hey, right nows the time of year for the best collecting. Have it fellas! :clap:

 

[CustomNature]

Alright, I wasnt going to put any up tonight, but here are two pics from earlier today. First one is an Argiope I found and the second is about an L5 or L6 (Im guessing) Chinese mantis. Just to get the ball rolling..

 

[Dark Raptor]

I'm generally interested in saproxylic beetles. By Speight definition (1989) they are: "Species of invertebrates that are dependent, during some part of their life cycle, upon the dead or dying wood of moribound or dead trees (standing or fallen), or upon wood-inhabiting fungi, or upon the presence of other saproxylics".

So the best method that I'm using right now are window-flight traps:

The best place to install this equipment are hollows of old, rottening trees. I prefer oak (Quecus spp.). But soon I will start new project on spruce (Picea abies).

It is also possible to add something that will attract insects (in this case beer and fruit syrup).

...and of corse 'standard' collecting by hand is also good addition to that method.

I'm also using pitfall traps:

...and light traps:

Sifting and checking wood mould is also a good method to collect smaller species and larvae (in that pic I've got some of that stuff in white bucket)

PS. I won't show You how I collect carrion and coprophagic beetles

Thanks to ImageShack for Free Image Hosting

 

[Malkavian]

Kinda curious now that yo usaid you wont show that...

 

[cacoseraph]

Kinda curious now that yo usaid you wont show that...

heh, those are corpse and poop eaters....

 

[cacoseraph]

...and of corse 'standard' collecting by hand is also good addition to that method.

dude that pic with your arm in the stump up to the elbow is freaky!

i regularily uncover rattlesnakes and southern CA is rediculously thick with widows.

 

[Dark Raptor]

dude that pic with your arm in the stump up to the elbow is freaky!

i regularily uncover rattlesnakes and southern CA is rediculously thick with widows.

I'm lucky. In Poland we have only Vipera berus and only few venomous spiders (but less than Lathrodectus).
But you are right. There was Formica rufa ant nest in that stump. I was biten badly by hundreds of angry workers. Sometimes that work is really painfull

 

[cacoseraph]

I'm lucky. In Poland we have only Vipera berus and only few venomous spiders (but less than Lathrodectus).
But you are right. There was Formica rufa ant nest in that stump. I was biten badly by hundreds of angry workers. Sometimes that work is really painfull

ouch!
i have to imagine it is some what worrying to be getting bit/stung and not know *what* is doing it

 

[CustomNature]

Wow man. That pic of you basically inside that tree is awesome. I live in the northeast US and I have never even seen trees that large here! lol I also never heard of or have seen those window flying traps... which I'm curious about. I take it the beetles hit the window pieces and fall down into the funnel?? And the blue tarp thing ontop is basically an umbrella?? I'm leaving to go collecting in about and hour so I'll post my pics and stuff here when I get home.

 

[galeogirl]

When I had a yard, I used to put out the white sheet under the porch light, then go check for cool moths and such. Always a fun evening.

I've been wanting to go out collecting and photographing, but none of my friends are really interested in going. Hoping to collect some Carabus nemoralis next spring and try my hand at keeping them.

 

[Dark Raptor]

Wow man. That pic of you basically inside that tree is awesome. I live in the northeast US and I have never even seen trees that large here! lol I also never heard of or have seen those window flying traps... which I'm curious about. I take it the beetles hit the window pieces and fall down into the funnel?? And the blue tarp thing ontop is basically an umbrella?? I'm leaving to go collecting in about and hour so I'll post my pics and stuff here when I get home.

I've seen much larger oaks than this in that pic

Yes. You guess how the whole trap works I can only add that there is ethylene glycol in the bottle. All betles that fall into glycol quickly drown in this preservative fluid and can stay there for almost month.
I'm trying now to build similar trap, but wihich will allow me to catch living specimens.

 

[AR-Tarantula]

Saproxylics in the U.S.

Dark Raptor,

Glad you brought up the topic of saproxylic insects. Since 1999, I have been working on saproxylic beetles in bottomland hardwood ecosystems of the southern U.S. I have become very familiar with the research that has come out of Europe on this topic. I have never used those trunk-window traps but am interested in how effective they are in trapping cerambycids. I am now working on a project in Arkansas regarding the creation of foraging habitat for ivory-billed woodpeckers. Fifty percent of the ivory-billed diets is thought to consist of cerambycids and other dying tree/dead wood associated beetles.

I have used malaise traps successfully in collecting cerambycids but have never tried any of the European-style window traps. Just curious as to what you have encountered.

 

[CustomNature]

Yeah, i'm really interested in this window trap thing as well. Also, I'm working on building an underwater light trap. I know some people have made them before, but I'll keep this thread posted on my progress. Hopefully it will be a better way to catch diving beetles and toe-bitters and insects of the sort.

 

[Dark Raptor]

Ok. With my language skills it will be difficult, but I will try to write something more about this topic.

I'm capturing saproxylic beetles with use of windows traps for 4 years. Cerambycid beetles are very small group in collected material. I'm just preparing for master's thesis exam so I've just analyzed precisely only part of it (beetles captured in 2002).
Family Cerambycidae presents only 5% of all beetles (so I think this method isn't too good for this family).

This is full list of species colected that year (2002):
Alosterna tabacicolor
Exocentrus adspersus
Leiopus nebulosus
Leptura quadrifasciata
Mesosa curculionoides
Phymatodes testaceus
Plagionotus detritus
Prionus coriarius
Rhagium mordax
Ropalopus macropus
Stenocorus meridianus
Stenostola ferrea
Strangalia attenuata
Tetrops praeustus
Xylotrechus antilope

Most abudant familes were (with % of all collected specimens):
Anobiidae 21,03851518
Throscidae 8,861710117
Dermestidae 7,842506169
Mycetophagidae 7,467009977
Elateridae 6,372706791
Nitidulidae 6,297607553
Aderidae 5,224761292
Ptinidae 3,980259629
Leiodidae 3,315094947
Catopidae 3,293638022
Alleculidae 3,100525695
Histeridae 2,821585667
Tenebrionidae 2,660658728
Scolytidae 2,585559489
Scraptiidae 2,564102564
Cerylidae 1,705825555
Cisidae 1,523441691
Melandryidae 1,426885527
Eucnemidae 1,276687051
Lymexylonidae 1,040660873
Scarabaeidae 1,008475485
Trogidae 0,836820084
Cerambycidae 0,557880056
Curculionidae 0,49350928
Monotomidae 0,472052355
Malachiidae 0,386224654
Cleridae 0,311125416
Corylophidae 0,278940028
Melyridae 0,236026177
Colydiidae 0,214569252
Erotylidae 0,171655402
Mordellidae 0,118013089
Silvanidae 0,085827701
Sphindidae 0,053642313
Endomychidae 0,04291385
Lucanidae 0,04291385
Oedemeridae 0,04291385
Salpingidae 0,04291385
Buprestidae 0,032185388
Laemophloeidae 0,032185388
Scirtidae 0,032185388
Anthribidae 0,021456925
Clambidae 0,021456925
Peltidae 0,021456925
Pyrochroidae 0,021456925
Carabidae 0,010728463
Lycidae 0,010728463

Staphylinidae, Scaphidiidae and Pselaphidae are excluded. Only in 2002 I've captured 9321 specimens belonging to 240 species and to 47 families. If I add material from other years I've got (to that moment) more than 15.000 specimens, 320 species and more than 55 families.

Of corse I'm only talking about species that were classified as saproxylic. I've captured also a lot of other beetles like Chrysomelidae, Cantharidae ect.

 

[NiGHTS]

Anyone have any good live trapping methods for millipedes? So far, I've been hand collecting by turning over rocks and logs, and checking around the base of trees. ...but I know there's got to be an easier method.

 

[Wade]

An ordinary minnow trap makes a good aquatic insect trap, especially for large diving beetles, but it should be positioned in such a way that the beetles don't drown. Arranging it so the cones are under water but the top is above is ideal. Bait shoul be suspended in the middle.

I've also made mini aquatic traps by cutting the top off of a plastic water or soda bottle and then putting them back on with the mouth inside (secured with a large rubber band) so it makes a funnel.

Wade

 

[AR-Tarantula]

Thanks for the info. Another question. Do you get many Lucanidae with your light traps?

 

[Dark Raptor]

Thanks for the info. Another question. Do you get many Lucanidae with your light traps?

I've collected only Dorcus parallelipipedus, Platycerus caraboides and Sinodendron cylindricum. Small number, but we've got only 7 species of Lucanid beetles in Poland.
My friend captured Lucanus cervus on light-trap.

 

[Dark Raptor]

Ok. If this thread is also about collecting trips... these pics were taken during my fieldworks in Tatra Mts. I took part in experiment in which we were examining different substances produced by rottening wood and beetles that were attracted by them (mostly bark beetles). We collected also large amounts of specialised predators belonging to Cleridae, Tenebrionidae, Cerylidae and Histeridae families.

This ugly one... it's me

Thanks to ImageShack for Free Image Hosting

 

[cacoseraph]

Potato trap

Anyone have any good live trapping methods for millipedes? So far, I've been hand collecting by turning over rocks and logs, and checking around the base of trees. ...but I know there's got to be an easier method.

you could try a potato trap. basically boil a potato, then carefully make a hole and scoop a largish chamber out of the potato.

bury that puppy and retrieve it 24-96 hours later. later = more bugs, but bigger chance of rotting apart

you'll get all kinds of random stuff in there, too, though