drying specimens in humid conditions

[Anne Kilmer]

Who? Me? wrote:
> 
> On 21 Jul 2001 14:19:13 GMT, kbliss0568 at aol.com (KBliss0568) wrote:
> 
> >up, the hotter it is).  Then, to keep ants away, I spray ant spray
> >around the bottom of the unit.  Perfect!  So far, not a problem at all.
> >
> >Downstairs, the ants have taken ten years off my life due to the trauma
> >I've suffered through finding only the remains of once beautiful moths
> >on my boards.
> 
> I've suffered this problem too. The only solution that I have found is
> to use 1 pint motor oil bottles (plastic), cut in half. Place legs of
> table/cabinet in each one and add 1/2 inch - 1 inch of motor oil.
> The smell goes away after a month; the oil won't evaporate & NO ant
> will try & cross the moat!
> 
> Sorry about your Carpet. LOL
> 
> Cheers,
> Chris
> 
A more elegant solution is to use tunafish cans, which you can paint
nicely. I've had good success with vegetable oil, which is still
effective when it's gummy and old. You do need to check that drifting
detritus does not build a bridge. 
I spent some years doing battle with Technomyrmex albipes, the
white-footed ant, and eventually we learned to live in harmony. When I
had the wet wood in the roof replaced, alas, my ants went away and the
roaches moved back in. Little had I known how lucky I was. 
The worst of my losses to the ants was a fine skeleton of a baby green
anole (found in a disused salad bowl), which I had mounted in a nice
frame and displayed proudly on a dollhouse wall. Had I but known, I
would have sealed it in plexiglas. 
Florida is bug country, humid and warm, and unless you're willing to be
eternally vigilant and live in a state of armed alert, it is easier not
to keep a collection. 

Last I looked, Palm Beach County is listed as having no butterflies at
all, in the official list whose name I forget ... Opler's work. Seems
you need a voucher collection, and I tried to persuade folks to get one
started, but failed. 
Mark Jeter, at the Mounts Botanical Garden, was willing to house one,
but we never found a collector who wanted to set one up or curate it. So
... if anyone wants to play with that, say Anne sent you. 
Cheers
Anne Kilmer
Mayo, Ireland

 
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