The Bob Ross of specimen preparation? I love watching these videos! I love all of it but my favourite part is the end where you show the rest of the your collection or when you show the live specimens! Keep the videos coming!!
Ive got a fear of touching dead bugs- but I'd love to pin a bumble bee someday, watching you pin it made me a little more comfortable 🥺 thank you for informative video!
Very impressive collection. The Giant Japanese Hornet is amazing!, and equally amazing are a few of them giant ants, wow! I have similar collections, more of the Tarantula, Mantis, Centipede, and Scorpion variety, but very similar, and I see the importance of these categorized collections, like you, and find it fascinating.
Very informative! I found a dead bumblebee a few days ago, wanted to keep it. Not sure if I want to pin it or keep it in a jar. It'll be my first attempt at preserving a bug. Do I need to dry it out with salt before pinning it?
It will dry nicely when pinned without any desiccation with silica provided the humidity is not high. I don't use salt for drying specimens. It should be dried before putting it in a jar because it will rot inside if it is sealed in a container when not dried.
im planning on going into all-around animal science, but stuff about arthropods and such is super fucking fascinating! you seem to know so much about all of the specimens you handle and i hope i might be the same lol
They are fascinating. I've been studying them for over 50 years and I'm still regularly amazed. Arthropods are so diverse in species and behaviors that they can teach us a lot about the principles of biology that apply to other groups of animals. Like any subject, when you put in your 10,000 hours, you'll be an expert!
My dad swatted a bumblebee this morning, and it seemed to be dead. About two hours after it was presumed dead, it picked itself up with its arms, took a step and fell down. I feel really bad for it because it was suffering. It had a broken wing and it waved its wings slowly. It also moves its antennae. It stopped stopped moving around 10 hours after its "death", but still moves its "hands" around 13 hours after it's "death" How it it possible I can make sure it's dead before I mount it? I know bees have a tendency to twitch after death, but I want to make sure it's dead. terrified of bees and I wanted to mount it because I felt sorry of the poor thing. I think bees are adorable but they scare me to death! Fyi, it's been in a sealed mason jar around two inches tall.
I think the most humane way to kill an insect is to freeze it. Being cold blooded, they don't feel cold the way we do and they just slow down until they stop. You can work on your fear of bees. They won't bother you if you're not near their nest or grabbing them. This is also true of wasps. One will occasionally make a mistake and sting someone for no reason but that is very rare in my experience.
I found a dying bumble bee on my path today. I’ve placed it on a table out of reach from rain, cats and ants in the hopes it recovers. In the case it doesn’t I’d like to pin it like this, does anyone know how long I’d need to wait for it to dry? Or would it be possible to pin it shortly after it’s passing? Just so I know how long to wait before I do it. Also, if the bee is curled up a little is there a way to uncurl it or has it just got to do with positioning with pins?
Emerging spring queens can be starved of energy if they don't find some nectar right away. If it's still alive try offering some sugar water. Put it right on the bee's mouth as see if it will drink. If it's dead, you can simply use your fingers to position the abdomen when you pin it. The amount of time it takes to dry depends somewhat on the humidity. Place the pinned specimen in a dry place and wait for a couple days to a week.
You will presumably find more in the future. I once collected about a dozen bumblebees that were mysteriously found dead under an entrance atrium of a school. They apparently got trapped in the glass enclosure above, confused about how to get out. Be sure to include data labels!
Hi! I just find a bumblebee, I think it has been about 4 days dead. I just want to know what is the best method to preserve it and if I should dry it before. I love your collection. Thank you!
If you intend to pin it you should keep it in a freezer until you are ready. Once it dries out it will break easily and will need to be re-hydrated before pinning. If you just want to preserve it without putting it on a pin you could use pins to hold the legs in a natural position and let it dry.
I recently found a bumble bee in my backyard that had been thoroughly dried out in the sun. How would I go about preparing it for taxidermy? Do I need to place it in alcohol, or is it dry enough that it won’t rot?
It won't decay since it is dry. In order to position the legs it needs to be re-hydrated. It can be placed in a closed container with some moist paper towel on the bottom. Place the bee on a piece of foil so it's not in direct contact with the water. These bees are furry and the hairs will become matted if they get wet. Once it is softened it can be re-positioned into a more natural pose to dry.
insectsafari thank you so much for this information. I was stung by a bumble bee (not sure why I didn’t see her until she was stinging me) I felt so bad about it. I decided to preserve her so it wasn’t for nothing.
I just found a dead bumblebee on my balcony. I intend to pin it but I think it's not relaxed enough for pinning. How would you relax a bumblebee? Just like butterflies? edit: it's also super small, would you still mount it with the legs open and wings opened? Is that possible with such a small thing?
Yes, you can relax it just like any other insect. Try no to get it too wet as this will matt the hairs on it's body. When it's dry you can fluff them up a little with a small stiff paintbrush. If it's very small it may not be a bumblebee. A small bee can be mounted in the same way with the legs and wings set. I use very thin insect pins to do this. Thick pins may make this process difficult. Also, a thin insect pin would be best to pin the thorax. A thick pin in a small bug doesn't work very well as it tends to damage the specimen. You can get a variety of pin sizes from BioQuip Products in California as well as all the other supplies that I use. Good luck with it and let me know how it goes.
I found a bumblebee like this one, as well as a fairly small spider and moth that id like to preserve in jars of hand sanitizer. They've all dried out for several days, would I need to soak them or anything before putting them in jars?
I have heard of using hand sanitizer for preservation but I've not seen it done. I can't imagine that it would look very good. The hairs on the bee would be all matted like a wet dog and the moth wings would go translucent and be unrecognizable. I suppose a hard beetle or wasp would OK preserved like that, I would relax the specimens and mount them on pins if you want to keep them. They will look good and last a long time. I have other videos describing how to do this.
How do you decide weather or not to spread wings? I saw some of the bees had spread wings and others didn’t. Thanks! I love your videos and techniques! Hope you continue!
The wings tend to stay in different positions for each bee when they die. I just adjust them so that they are symmetrical. I have some more videos in production that will be ready when I finish the projects.
I have a couple of bumblebees that I want to rehydrate, how can I do it without ruining its fur? One is a bombus dalbhomii that I found dead here in Chile
I would inject water into the thorax from below with a syringe. Then put the specimen in a closed small container until it gets soft. It may take a day or so depending on how dry it was. If you don't have a syringe you can put it in a small container with a little moist paper towel on the bottom. Set the bee on some foil on top of the damp towel so it doesn't get wet.
Awesome collection! I was wondering, is it better to pin a bumble bee or put it in a jar with hand sanitizer? I just found a dead bumble bee and I'm not sure how I should preserve it.
I would definitely pin it. If you get a furry bee like this wet, the hairs will mat and it won't look good at all. I've never preserved a specimen in hand sanitizer. I suppose it might work for some bugs but the usual medium is alcohol.
Can you tell me about the carpenter bees? I’m pretty sure I’ve seen some in my home country but I always thought they were beetles I wasn’t aware that carpenter bees existed. Sorry if I’m bothering you it’s just so interesting
Some of them are all blue/black and shiny, without much hair. Others are fuzzy yellow on the thorax but black and smooth on the abdomen. They are found in most parts of the world so you probably do have some where you live.
It's a teaching collection so I oriented the various Families in different directions to make it easier for people who are not familiar with the taxonomy to see the groupings. Maximizing space is also a consideration because I have a lot more specimens than I have room to display.
Super helpful! I pinned an Irish red tailed bee! I'm just wondering is it possible to buy bugs to pin? I want to get some specimens to pin from other countries but I'm unsure where to find them.
Yes, you can get specimens from all around the world. Sometimes it's difficult to ship them internationally because of regulations. In what country do you live?
@@MasonMyLord There are several suppliers in Europe. Here are a few: www.thebugmaniac.com/, collectionneurdinsectes.com, collectionneurdinsectes.com/, collectionneurdinsectes.com/, www.mrozekinsect.com/index.php?page=2.
@@MasonMyLord I am in England and I use wobam.co.uk/ they've been great and have a pretty good range of specimens from different places in my experience :)
I have a bumblebee in the process of dying outside my house. I tried to save him but he cannot move on his own. I want to pin him if he passes. The weather is cold - will I need to soak him in anything? Or just begin the pinning right away? Thanks
A freshly dead specimen can be pinned without relaxing it. This is actually the best way to pin a specimen. You want to make sure it's dead before pinning. Let it sit for a day to be sure. If it's cold outside the bee may not be dying, it just needs to warm up so it can fly. Bring it inside for a while and see if it comes around. If so, you can put it back where you found it and when it gets warmer it will go back to the nest and get to work. If you're ready to pin it, first gently move the legs around to make sure that the joints are loose so it will be easier to position them.
I don't know I am late or something but I found a dead bee in my classroom under my desk and I wanted to preserve it. How did you make so the specimens wings are open without any pins, just the pin in the thorax? 🤔 Edit: grammar. I'm from Latvia btw
If the specimen needs to be re-hydrated you can put it in a closed container with some moist paper towel on the bottom until it gets soft. Place the specimen on a piece of foil so it doesn't come in contact with the wet towel.
There was a note on the data page, "Extinct?" for a bumblebee from San Francisco that I collected in the 80's. Mr Hatfield from Xerxes suspects that it's from a population that is probably now extinct. The species still exists elsewhere. I do have a specimen of a subspecies of an African butterfly, Charaxes martini, that I have been told is extinct.
Hello! I'd like to pin a bumblebee myself but I don't know the first thing about insect collecting. I've done some research online but what I don't really understand is the preservation part itself. If I find a bee and decide to pin it, is there anything that I have to do to keep it from decaying? I was also wondering how you go about finding a dead bee. It's currently September and it's getting colder where I live now so would it still be possible to find one? Thanks!
Once the specimen is dried it won't decompose as long as you keep it dry. I've seen insect specimens that are over 200 years old that look just fine. If it's dried out when you get it you'll need to relax the specimen. I show how to do this in other videos on my channel. This time of year the bumblebees are pretty much done for the year so if you collect a live worker it won't hurt the colony. Only the new queens which will overwinter to start new colonies in the spring will survive. When I have to, I kill specimens by freezing them. I think it's the most humane way to do it.
@@TheCatfan18 Yup i came across mine just in the side of the road, fully intact, although it is June. Keep your eyes open. Youll find one when u least expect it
The Bob Ross of specimen preparation?
I love watching these videos! I love all of it but my favourite part is the end where you show the rest of the your collection or when you show the live specimens! Keep the videos coming!!
I'm happy that you enjoy them. I will be making videos featuring a tour of the collection sometime soon.
Ive got a fear of touching dead bugs- but I'd love to pin a bumble bee someday, watching you pin it made me a little more comfortable 🥺 thank you for informative video!
Very impressive collection. The Giant Japanese Hornet is amazing!, and equally amazing are a few of them giant ants, wow!
I have similar collections, more of the Tarantula, Mantis, Centipede, and Scorpion variety, but very similar, and I see the importance of these categorized collections, like you, and find it fascinating.
We just made our first bumblebee specimen, a bombus terrestris! thank you for your clear explanation, excited to see how it will dry out :)
I'm happy that you found it useful. So you must be in Europe?
your collection is amazing!!!
Thank you. I will be using more of it in videos in the future.
Very informative! I found a dead bumblebee a few days ago, wanted to keep it. Not sure if I want to pin it or keep it in a jar. It'll be my first attempt at preserving a bug. Do I need to dry it out with salt before pinning it?
It will dry nicely when pinned without any desiccation with silica provided the humidity is not high. I don't use salt for drying specimens. It should be dried before putting it in a jar because it will rot inside if it is sealed in a container when not dried.
Thank you!
@Spicy Apple Just leave it out exposed to the air and it will dry out in a few days.
@@insectsafari i always thought people socked their specimens in something so they wont rot
@@cherrycotapie Some of the softer bodied insects can benefit from a solvent soak but most will just dry out and preserve well.
im planning on going into all-around animal science, but stuff about arthropods and such is super fucking fascinating! you seem to know so much about all of the specimens you handle and i hope i might be the same lol
They are fascinating. I've been studying them for over 50 years and I'm still regularly amazed. Arthropods are so diverse in species and behaviors that they can teach us a lot about the principles of biology that apply to other groups of animals. Like any subject, when you put in your 10,000 hours, you'll be an expert!
Shoh your entire collection
My dad swatted a bumblebee this morning, and it seemed to be dead. About two hours after it was presumed dead, it picked itself up with its arms, took a step and fell down. I feel really bad for it because it was suffering. It had a broken wing and it waved its wings slowly. It also moves its antennae. It stopped stopped moving around 10 hours after its "death", but still moves its "hands" around 13 hours after it's "death" How it it possible I can make sure it's dead before I mount it? I know bees have a tendency to twitch after death, but I want to make sure it's dead. terrified of bees and I wanted to mount it because I felt sorry of the poor thing. I think bees are adorable but they scare me to death! Fyi, it's been in a sealed mason jar around two inches tall.
I think the most humane way to kill an insect is to freeze it. Being cold blooded, they don't feel cold the way we do and they just slow down until they stop. You can work on your fear of bees. They won't bother you if you're not near their nest or grabbing them. This is also true of wasps. One will occasionally make a mistake and sting someone for no reason but that is very rare in my experience.
@@insectsafari thank you so much for your help!
I found a dying bumble bee on my path today. I’ve placed it on a table out of reach from rain, cats and ants in the hopes it recovers.
In the case it doesn’t I’d like to pin it like this, does anyone know how long I’d need to wait for it to dry? Or would it be possible to pin it shortly after it’s passing?
Just so I know how long to wait before I do it.
Also, if the bee is curled up a little is there a way to uncurl it or has it just got to do with positioning with pins?
Emerging spring queens can be starved of energy if they don't find some nectar right away. If it's still alive try offering some sugar water. Put it right on the bee's mouth as see if it will drink.
If it's dead, you can simply use your fingers to position the abdomen when you pin it. The amount of time it takes to dry depends somewhat on the humidity. Place the pinned specimen in a dry place and wait for a couple days to a week.
Now I'm sad that I did not kepd the amazing looking blue colored carpenter bees taht I found at my workplace.
Xylocopa violacea
You will presumably find more in the future. I once collected about a dozen bumblebees that were mysteriously found dead under an entrance atrium of a school. They apparently got trapped in the glass enclosure above, confused about how to get out. Be sure to include data labels!
Hi! I just find a bumblebee, I think it has been about 4 days dead. I just want to know what is the best method to preserve it and if I should dry it before. I love your collection. Thank you!
If you intend to pin it you should keep it in a freezer until you are ready. Once it dries out it will break easily and will need to be re-hydrated before pinning. If you just want to preserve it without putting it on a pin you could use pins to hold the legs in a natural position and let it dry.
I recently found a bumble bee in my backyard that had been thoroughly dried out in the sun. How would I go about preparing it for taxidermy? Do I need to place it in alcohol, or is it dry enough that it won’t rot?
It won't decay since it is dry. In order to position the legs it needs to be re-hydrated. It can be placed in a closed container with some moist paper towel on the bottom. Place the bee on a piece of foil so it's not in direct contact with the water. These bees are furry and the hairs will become matted if they get wet. Once it is softened it can be re-positioned into a more natural pose to dry.
insectsafari thank you so much for this information. I was stung by a bumble bee (not sure why I didn’t see her until she was stinging me) I felt so bad about it. I decided to preserve her so it wasn’t for nothing.
Show your entire collection
I just found a dead bumblebee on my balcony. I intend to pin it but I think it's not relaxed enough for pinning. How would you relax a bumblebee? Just like butterflies?
edit: it's also super small, would you still mount it with the legs open and wings opened? Is that possible with such a small thing?
Yes, you can relax it just like any other insect. Try no to get it too wet as this will matt the hairs on it's body. When it's dry you can fluff them up a little with a small stiff paintbrush. If it's very small it may not be a bumblebee. A small bee can be mounted in the same way with the legs and wings set. I use very thin insect pins to do this. Thick pins may make this process difficult. Also, a thin insect pin would be best to pin the thorax. A thick pin in a small bug doesn't work very well as it tends to damage the specimen. You can get a variety of pin sizes from BioQuip Products in California as well as all the other supplies that I use. Good luck with it and let me know how it goes.
I found a bumblebee like this one, as well as a fairly small spider and moth that id like to preserve in jars of hand sanitizer. They've all dried out for several days, would I need to soak them or anything before putting them in jars?
I have heard of using hand sanitizer for preservation but I've not seen it done. I can't imagine that it would look very good. The hairs on the bee would be all matted like a wet dog and the moth wings would go translucent and be unrecognizable. I suppose a hard beetle or wasp would OK preserved like that,
I would relax the specimens and mount them on pins if you want to keep them. They will look good and last a long time. I have other videos describing how to do this.
How do you decide weather or not to spread wings? I saw some of the bees had spread wings and others didn’t. Thanks! I love your videos and techniques! Hope you continue!
The wings tend to stay in different positions for each bee when they die. I just adjust them so that they are symmetrical. I have some more videos in production that will be ready when I finish the projects.
I have a couple of bumblebees that I want to rehydrate, how can I do it without ruining its fur? One is a bombus dalbhomii that I found dead here in Chile
I would inject water into the thorax from below with a syringe. Then put the specimen in a closed small container until it gets soft. It may take a day or so depending on how dry it was. If you don't have a syringe you can put it in a small container with a little moist paper towel on the bottom. Set the bee on some foil on top of the damp towel so it doesn't get wet.
@@insectsafari thank you so much
Awesome collection! I was wondering, is it better to pin a bumble bee or put it in a jar with hand sanitizer? I just found a dead bumble bee and I'm not sure how I should preserve it.
I would definitely pin it. If you get a furry bee like this wet, the hairs will mat and it won't look good at all. I've never preserved a specimen in hand sanitizer. I suppose it might work for some bugs but the usual medium is alcohol.
Can you tell me about the carpenter bees? I’m pretty sure I’ve seen some in my home country but I always thought they were beetles I wasn’t aware that carpenter bees existed. Sorry if I’m bothering you it’s just so interesting
Some of them are all blue/black and shiny, without much hair. Others are fuzzy yellow on the thorax but black and smooth on the abdomen. They are found in most parts of the world so you probably do have some where you live.
Never seen a collection arranged that way, suppose it's to maximise space?
It's a teaching collection so I oriented the various Families in different directions to make it easier for people who are not familiar with the taxonomy to see the groupings. Maximizing space is also a consideration because I have a lot more specimens than I have room to display.
Super helpful! I pinned an Irish red tailed bee! I'm just wondering is it possible to buy bugs to pin? I want to get some specimens to pin from other countries but I'm unsure where to find them.
Yes, you can get specimens from all around the world. Sometimes it's difficult to ship them internationally because of regulations. In what country do you live?
insectsafari I’m from Ireland 🇮🇪
@@MasonMyLord There are several suppliers in Europe. Here are a few: www.thebugmaniac.com/, collectionneurdinsectes.com, collectionneurdinsectes.com/, collectionneurdinsectes.com/, www.mrozekinsect.com/index.php?page=2.
@@MasonMyLord I am in England and I use wobam.co.uk/ they've been great and have a pretty good range of specimens from different places in my experience :)
I have a bumblebee in the process of dying outside my house. I tried to save him but he cannot move on his own. I want to pin him if he passes. The weather is cold - will I need to soak him in anything? Or just begin the pinning right away? Thanks
A freshly dead specimen can be pinned without relaxing it. This is actually the best way to pin a specimen. You want to make sure it's dead before pinning. Let it sit for a day to be sure. If it's cold outside the bee may not be dying, it just needs to warm up so it can fly. Bring it inside for a while and see if it comes around. If so, you can put it back where you found it and when it gets warmer it will go back to the nest and get to work. If you're ready to pin it, first gently move the legs around to make sure that the joints are loose so it will be easier to position them.
insectsafari thank you very very much!
I don't know I am late or something but I found a dead bee in my classroom under my desk and I wanted to preserve it. How did you make so the specimens wings are open without any pins, just the pin in the thorax? 🤔
Edit: grammar. I'm from Latvia btw
If the insect is not dry you can gently pull the wings with your fingers into an open position. Then brace the wings with pins like at 4:00.
@@insectsafariAnd then it remains that position when dried?
@@lacplesis484 They should as long as the flight muscles were not dried before the wings were positioned.
@@insectsafari Ok, big thank you!!
:D
how do you relax the bee before pinning if your specimen is stiff?
If the specimen needs to be re-hydrated you can put it in a closed container with some moist paper towel on the bottom until it gets soft. Place the specimen on a piece of foil so it doesn't come in contact with the wet towel.
Do you have any specimens that are extinct?
There was a note on the data page, "Extinct?" for a bumblebee from San Francisco that I collected in the 80's. Mr Hatfield from Xerxes suspects that it's from a population that is probably now extinct. The species still exists elsewhere.
I do have a specimen of a subspecies of an African butterfly, Charaxes martini, that I have been told is extinct.
Hello! I'd like to pin a bumblebee myself but I don't know the first thing about insect collecting. I've done some research online but what I don't really understand is the preservation part itself. If I find a bee and decide to pin it, is there anything that I have to do to keep it from decaying? I was also wondering how you go about finding a dead bee. It's currently September and it's getting colder where I live now so would it still be possible to find one? Thanks!
Once the specimen is dried it won't decompose as long as you keep it dry. I've seen insect specimens that are over 200 years old that look just fine. If it's dried out when you get it you'll need to relax the specimen. I show how to do this in other videos on my channel. This time of year the bumblebees are pretty much done for the year so if you collect a live worker it won't hurt the colony. Only the new queens which will overwinter to start new colonies in the spring will survive. When I have to, I kill specimens by freezing them. I think it's the most humane way to do it.
insectsafari thanks for the information! Do you think it would be possible to find one already dead?
Sure, it's possible. I sometimes find one late in the season just walking on a sidewalk with flower gardens next to it.
insectsafari I’ll be on the lookout for one. Thanks again!
@@TheCatfan18 Yup i came across mine just in the side of the road, fully intact, although it is June. Keep your eyes open. Youll find one when u least expect it
where do you find your specimens?
I get them from many sources. I catch them myself, share with other collectors, buy specimens from dealers and people give them to me.