Gillespie, David R.

Journal of the Entomological Society of British Columbia

42 J. E NTOMOL. Soc. BRIT. COI.UMBI A 78 (198 1) , DEC. 31, 198 1 Wilkinson, P. R. 1970. Dermacentor ticks on wildlife and new records of paralysis. J. Entomol. Soc. B.C. 67: 24-28. Wilkinson , P. R. 1972. Sites of attachment of 'prairie' and ' montane ' D ermacentor andersoni (Acarina: Ixodidae) on cattle. J. Med . Entomol. 9: 133-137. Wilkinson , P. R. 1979. Early achievements, recent advances, and future prospects in the ecology of the Rocky Mountam wood tIck. I n: Recent advances in acarology. Vol. r I. Academic Press New York p. 105-112. . A SIMPLE AND INEXPENSIVE STATIC SPREADING BOARD FOR MICROLEPIDOPTERA DAVID R. GILLESPIE A static spreading board for Microlepidop-tera, similar in principle to t hat described by Martin (1977 pp92-93), but more easily con-structed from readily available materials, was devised to save money. It cons iderably reduced the time and damage involved in handling when compared with a standard, wooden , non-static spreading board. The board is of styrofoam, 75 mm wide x 280 mm long x 24 mm thick with a longitudin al centre groove (fig. 1). A layer of inexpensive sandwi ch wrap is fastened to the surface with a silicon sealant and is forced into the groove wi th a pencil or dowel. Styrofoam sheets of the appropriate thickness are readily available be-cause they are commonly used for insulation. The dimensions of t he groove and the board may be var ied to fi t almost any need . A groove 10 mm wide and 5 mm deep was suitable for large microlepidoptera bu t a groove 5 mm wide and 5 mm deep was better fo r small species. To use the board, first statically charge it by rubbing with a dry cloth. The wing bases of the pinned mot h should be even with the surface of the board . Blowing from behind the wings forces t hem to an extended position where they are he ld in place by t he static charge. They are t hen fas tened with g lass ine paper s trips held in place by pins. The thorax of the specimen s hould be 10 to 11 mm below the head of t he moun ting pm . Boards of this design were used in 1979 and 1980 to mount large numbers of reared Lepidoptera , and were especially suitable for Tortricidae. The sandwich wrap did not remove many scales from the undersides of wings. It is essen-tial that all specimens be freshly killed, as the st atic system does not work with rehydrated or stiffened specimens. One minor drawback is that after the board has been used many times, the sandwich wrap becomes so perfora t-ed that it no longer functions as a static sur-face, and may actually abrade the wing sur-faces . When thi s happens the layer can simply be replaced . REFERENCE Martin , J . E . H. 1977. the Insects and Arachnids of Ca nada. Part l. Collecting , Preparing and Preserving Insects, Mites and Spiders. Agriculture Canada Publication 1643 . ~----------------------------p-A <J-B 25 mm ~------t1 Fig. l. Cross section of styrofoam spreading board. A. sandwich wrap overlay ; B, styrofoam. 

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A simple and inexpensive statue spreading board for microlepidoptera

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A simple and inexpensive statue spreading board for microlepidoptera

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Journal of the Entomological Society of British Columbia