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<div class="moz-cite-prefix">On 3/24/23 4:53 PM, Chris J. CONROY
wrote:<br>
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cite="mid:CAJiXy20WsZb64eCSk3Yaf_WR=wRD_82aneZcZC5t+LgMDqL-hA@mail.gmail.com">
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<div dir="ltr">Dear list,<br>
Three years ago we found clothes moths, <i>Tineola</i> <i>bisselliella</i>,
living and reproducing in 2 1-ft square pieces of dried baleen
from a <i>Megaptera novaeangliae</i>, Humpback whale. We
cleaned it up, bagged it, and froze and thawed it a few times at
-25C. Then the pandemic. Unfortunately, the moths have returned,
presumably from not being killed by several freeze-thaw cycles.
Use of tools and compressed air is not going to be sufficient to
remove all the moths since they are deep within the plates.<br>
<div> Does anyone have suggestions for effectively treating
these items to destroy the moths, but also not damage the
baleen too much? Has anyone seen moths feeding on baleen in
museums before?</div>
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<p>If freezing, heating, and fumigation are not good options, then
go anoxic if possible. I'm uncertain of the details, but have
heard that it can be very effective.</p>
<p>Peace,<br>
</p>
<pre class="moz-signature" cols="72">--
Doug Yanega Dept. of Entomology Entomology Research Museum
Univ. of California, Riverside, CA 92521-0314 skype: dyanega
phone: (951) 827-4315 (disclaimer: opinions are mine, not UCR's)
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="https://faculty.ucr.edu/~heraty/yanega.html">https://faculty.ucr.edu/~heraty/yanega.html</a>
"There are some enterprises in which a careful disorderliness
is the true method" - Herman Melville, Moby Dick, Chap. 82</pre>
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