How to Start a Bug Collection

If you're fascinated by the different and unique shapes, sizes and colors of the insect kingdom, starting a bug collection is for you.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderate

Things You’ll Need:

• Entomological Boxes
• Foam Adhesive Pads
• Insect Display Pins
• Stouts
• Trawls
• Foam
• Pond Nets
• Glycerols
• Strainers
• Beating Trays
• Bug Aspirators
• Index Cards
• Glass Slides

Methods of Collection

1. Use pond nets and trawls for catching bugs in aquatic habitats. You can make your own pond net by attaching a kitchen strainer to the end of a long cane.
2. Use stouts - large nets made of heavy white cloth - for collecting bugs in vegetation.
3. Lay down beating trays and/or large sheets under trees and bushes. Shake branches so that bugs fall to the ground.
4. Use a pooter, also known as an aspirator, to suck up small insects into a tube. Ecologists often use a large mechanical aspirator with a powerful suction mechanism to suck insects from the ground or from vegetation.
5. Use insecticide to fog vast amounts of space, from low-level plants to treetops. The size of the space affected depends on the amount of insecticide used. Collect the fallen bugs by spreading sheets or bags out on the ground beneath the target vegetation.
6. Set up traps. There are many varieties of insect traps, based on water, light, flight interception, stickiness and pitfalls; set up each one for a period of time and return to remove any bugs.

Labeling and Storage

7. Kill the insects you've caught by placing them in a freezer for a short time.
8. Store the majority of bugs by pinning them to the surface board of the "collection," a special entomological box. The bugs can be pinned directly through the body's scutellum (midline). Make sure to only use pins made of stainless steel.
9. Use micro-pins to attach the bug onto small pieces of foam. The foam is then attached to a main pin, which goes into the base of the collection.
10. Stick smaller bugs to index cards using water-soluble adhesive. Then attach the index cards to the main pin.
11. Mount aphids, scale insects and mealy bugs (from the suborder Sternorrhyncha) to glass slides. Preparing a good glass slide mount can be complicated and may involve a number of chemicals. Consult an entomological textbook for more information on preparing them.
12. Provide related information about the bug on an index card attached to the same pin as the bug. Include the precise location where the bug was collected, the date of collection, its habitat, and the collector's name. Pin the card or label 1 to 2 inches under the bug.
13. Provide additional information when applicable, such as the method of collection, associated plant (if the insect is an herbivore) and other related field observations.
14. Glue dissected structures, such as male genitalia or other structures that aid in species identification, to a card mounted alongside the specimen. You can also store these structures in a micro-vial filled with glycerol; attach the vial to the main pin.

Tips & Warnings

• Traps may not catch the insects you want caught. For example, pitfall traps tend to catch ground-running beetles and other invertebrates rather than ants. Make adjustments to the location of the trap or the trap itself if you aren't getting the desired results.
• Select the proper tubing material when using a pooter. Glass and plastic tubes can be damaged in certain situations, often by chemicals found in vegetation. Avoid allowing the chemicals to seep into the machine, since particular acidity levels can singe the tubing.
• Use caution when dealing with insecticides. Try using other collection methods first, especially if you're a beginner.
• Keep pinned collections in special airtight entomological boxes or drawers. Avoid Styrofoam-filled shoeboxes, which may be exposed to common household pests.
• Poisonous substances - ethyl acetate and cyanide, for example - can also be used to kill bugs. Use a specifically prepared jar for this purpose. Nymphs and soft-bodied adult bugs such as scale insects and aphids can be killed and preserved directly in 70 percent alcohol (100 percent alcohol diluted to 70 percent with distilled water). Preserve these bugs before mounting them onto glass slides.
• Use caution when handling bugs, traps, chemicals and other pieces of equipment. Always have adult supervision if you're a youngster.