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Post by nomihoudai on Mar 13, 2012 15:49:50 GMT -8
Why do something the easy way when you can do it the hard way Damage is relative for people. Most people will say that pinching is just fine, the wings look ok. Other people do not find it ok, for me damage in Noctuidae already is when the the outer margin of scales of the wing is lost at some parts. You pinch the moth and got any scales on your fingers ->damaged. You press the moth against your sheet and there remains some scales->damaged
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Post by Khalid Fadil on Mar 13, 2012 18:17:29 GMT -8
An American friend of mine kills moths in the field by using a syringe and alcohol. He fills the syringe and injects a little into the moths where they sit, death is almost instantaneous. I have watched him at work when he came here a few years back and he even injects small Geometers, all with no damage at all. I still haven't found out how on Earth do you inject a moth without handling it. Its free to fly away if you don't! Its baffling... I've even tried it myself. It seems impossible. Once the needle comes in contact with the moth it just flies away! Your American friend is a magician...
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ckswank
Full Member
Posts: 239
Country: USA
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Post by ckswank on Mar 13, 2012 18:48:40 GMT -8
Khalid - You have to do it very quickly & precisely. I used to do this, but my hands aren't that steady any more nor is my eyesight as sharp. It's strange, but you soon learn which moths will fly & which ones will let you manipulate them so you can grasp them with no damage. I've also used a quick flip of the forefinger to the thorax on underwing moths (Catocala) fairly successfully. Also used this technique on bees & wasps, but you have to be very sure you stun them on the first try or be prepared to run like heck!
Charlie
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Post by Khalid Fadil on Mar 13, 2012 22:13:17 GMT -8
I see... I do that to large bodied moths, too, sometimes... The flicking technique really works if administered properly. Otherwise, you just end up with a little splat...
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Post by exoticimports on Mar 14, 2012 9:20:43 GMT -8
Pinching a large moth won't kill it the way it will a small butterfly but it will stun it long enough for you to get it into an envelope.
We used syringes with rubbing alcohol during a trip in Ecuador. You do have to get the moth into the net first, then press it somewhat flat (usually on the ground) and drive the syringe through the net into the moth body and inject.
The injection method was invaluable on that trip; two of us at one MV light couldn't keep up with the incoming moth traffic. We'd net, inject, then (be ready) throw them on a pile which accumulated to several hundred specimens before we had time to stuff them into envelopes. If we'd been using killing jars alone we'd have needed hundreds; if we'd just pinched them (good luck on agrippina) they would have been wandering around.
They alcohol syringe also works great on Ornithoptera, large beetles, and things you may not want to screw around with like scorpions and centipedes.
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