How to get rid of smell on dragonfly specimen?

[sappet102]

Hello, I recently scooped a dragonfly out of some pond much, pinned him, and aired him out. A week later, he smells when you put your nose up close. I am assuming this is because of the pond I found him in. It isn't too horrible unless you get very close to him.

Is there any way to get rid of the smell? Will it disappear over time? Is it some form of bacteria that will eat the specimen away? Can I display this specimen next to others without fear of this bacteria spreading and deteriorating all of my other insects?

[luehdorfia]

As a safety first measure I would always freeze every specimen for two weeks before adding it to the collection, perhaps that would already get rid of the smell. If that doesn't help, you could also bath the dragonfly in acetone, this is also good for refreshing the colours expecially dragonflies have a lot oil in their body, that you can get rid of with acetone.

[luehdorfia]

As a safety first measure I would always freeze every specimen for two weeks before adding it to the collection, perhaps that would already get rid of the smell. If that doesn't help, you could also bath the dragonfly in acetone, this is also good for refreshing the colours expecially dragonflies have a lot oil in their body, that you can get rid of with acetone.