777
Junior Aurelian
Posts: 97
Country: U.S.A.
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Post by 777 on Nov 3, 2018 1:40:59 GMT
I have a pinned Phoebis philea, and I’m bothered by the way its wings are irregularly positioned. Is there any way for me to relax it to reposition the wings?
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Post by nomihoudai on Nov 3, 2018 3:04:59 GMT
How do you usually relax butterflies? You can just put the butterfly in a humid chamber and it will relax. So some styrofoam/sponge/sand with water and butterfly with needle stuck into it. Beware that some Pierids develop green spots in high humidity. Therefore your Phoebis could end up stained by the procedure.
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Post by deliasfanatic on Nov 3, 2018 3:10:56 GMT
Just adding to the above, it will take much less time to relax a specimen that's already pinned as opposed to one that's folded and papered. It will most likely be soft enough in 6-8 hours, and you'll run less risk of humidity damage by removing it in such a short time.
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777
Junior Aurelian
Posts: 97
Country: U.S.A.
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Post by 777 on Nov 3, 2018 4:19:21 GMT
How do you usually relax butterflies? You can just put the butterfly in a humid chamber and it will relax. So some styrofoam/sponge/sand with water and butterfly with needle stuck into it. Beware that some Pierids develop green spots in high humidity. Therefore your Phoebis could end up stained by the procedure. I usually relax my butterflies by placing them in damp paper towels (not too much dampness), putting them in a tupperware container, and then letting them sit in the fridge for about 24 hours. It makes the specimens super flexible with no wing damage. Also, thank you for the advice! |
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777
Junior Aurelian
Posts: 97
Country: U.S.A.
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Post by 777 on Nov 3, 2018 4:19:47 GMT
Just adding to the above, it will take much less time to relax a specimen that's already pinned as opposed to one that's folded and papered. It will most likely be soft enough in 6-8 hours, and you'll run less risk of humidity damage by removing it in such a short time. Thank you! |
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Post by exoticimports on Nov 9, 2018 21:23:25 GMT
How do you usually relax butterflies? You can just put the butterfly in a humid chamber and it will relax. So some styrofoam/sponge/sand with water and butterfly with needle stuck into it. Beware that some Pierids develop green spots in high humidity. Therefore your Phoebis could end up stained by the procedure. I usually relax my butterflies by placing them in damp paper towels (not too much dampness), putting them in a tupperware container, and then letting them sit in the fridge for about 24 hours. It makes the specimens super flexible with no wing damage. Also, thank you for the advice! Why in the refrigerator? |
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777
Junior Aurelian
Posts: 97
Country: U.S.A.
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Post by 777 on Nov 10, 2018 1:11:15 GMT
I usually relax my butterflies by placing them in damp paper towels (not too much dampness), putting them in a tupperware container, and then letting them sit in the fridge for about 24 hours. It makes the specimens super flexible with no wing damage. Also, thank you for the advice! Why in the refrigerator? To be honest, I’m not quite sure why. The relaxing technique that I use is from another insect collector from a video. I forgot what the reason for refrigeration was, but I followed it anyway. |
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Post by Adam Cotton on Nov 10, 2018 7:58:05 GMT
Maybe it's to slow down possible growth of mould or bacteria.
Adam.
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Post by exoticimports on Nov 12, 2018 12:13:00 GMT
Maybe it's to slow down possible growth of mould or bacteria. Adam. I just add rubbing alcohol to the relaxing container |
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Post by xavm (Xavier) on Nov 16, 2018 9:26:42 GMT
Maybe it's to slow down possible growth of mould or bacteria. Adam. I just add rubbing alcohol to the relaxing container Adding alcohol prevents the appearance of green or blue spots on the wings. I use this technics to relax Bleu Lycaenids. |
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Post by exoticimports on Nov 23, 2018 13:31:29 GMT
One would think a refrigerator would slow the relaxing process. It would be interesting to know the purported value in fridge relaxing. I usually try to expedite the process.
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