This document provides instructions for collecting and pinning insects. It describes the necessary equipment, including insect pins of various sizes, a pinning block, and display boxes. It explains how to properly position insects on pins, such as tucking legs under the body and placing antennae horizontally. Specific instructions are given for common orders of insects, such as pinning beetles through the right elytra and grasshoppers through the right pronotum. The document emphasizes maintaining proper height and posture of pinned insects.

2.  Steps of insect collection
 Equipments for pinning(description)
 Pinning of different insects(order)
 Arrangement

3. Steps of Insect collection
• Capturing by different techniques
• Killing them by the help of killing jar
• Relaxing insects
• Pinning insects
• Labeling insects
• Storing insects

4. Why pinning required
• Before displaying --posture should be maintained
• To avoid breakage
• To demonstrate each part clearly
• To make collection neat and clean

5.  “Insect Pins” for pinning
 Pinning block
 Spreading board
 Preserving or display boxes

6. Pinning of insects
Types of pins.
Height of insect on pins
Posture of insect on pin
Where to pin
Labeling etc

7. • “Insect pins” should be used to avoid rust and
to adjust the insect properly
• Insect pins come in various sizes ranging from
000 to 7
• Smaller the no…… the thinner the pin.
• Sizes 1-3 best size for most insects.

8. Height of insects
• All parts of insects should have uniform
distance from the top of the pin.
• A good distance is 8-10 mm or about 2/3 or
1/4 of the way up the pin.

9.  The use of a pinning block will help in obtaining
proper height and positioning.
 7.5 cm long and 2.5 cm wide
 The first step is 0.6 cm high, the second 1.2 cm
and the third 2.2 cm high.

11. Posture on Pins
• Legs and antennae should not be projected
into lifelike positions.
• Legs should be tucked under the insect’s body
• Antennae should be in horizontal manner

13. Smaller should be mounted on card points
Card points are slender triangles of paper.
With the help of glue attach the insect
from right side
 Soft-bodied insects such as caterpillars,
mayflies, silverfish and others cannot be
pinned.

14.  Through the right side of the
thorax with the wings spread.
 Through the left side of the
body with the wings folded

15. Order Coleoptera:
(Beetles)
• Pin through right elytra(wing)
• Do not spread the wings

16. Order Orthoptera:
Grasshoppers, katydids and crickets
 Pin through the right side
of the pronotum.
 Set only the wings on left side.

17. Pin through the right side of
thorax, a little behind the
forewings
In flies set wings with the
front edges at 45° to the
body.

18. • Pin through the V shaped
shield (scuttelum), to the
right of middle line
• Do not spread wings

19. Order Neuroptera:
antlion, lacewings,and dobsonflies
Pinned through the right
side of pronotum
First margin of rear wings
at right angle to the body

20. • Pin through right side of thorax
• Hind margin of front wing at
right angles to the body
• Rear wing arranged so only a
small notch between front and
rear wings

21. 1- place insect in the center of spreading board
2- Place two strips of papers along both wings
3- Raise forewing to adjust it perpendicularly
4- Raise hind wing to reduce notch between
two wings.
5- Support the abdomen with the help of pins by
making V shape below abdomen

24. 1. Gibb, T, J,. and Oseto, C. Y.(2006) Arthropod collection,and identification
and identification(laboratory and field techniques) ISBN 13:978-0-12-
369545-1 .United States of America- pp :53-65
2. Paulson, G. S., (2005) (Handbook to the constructin and use of insect
collection and rearing devices) Springer Dordecht, The Netherlands -
pp:92,93
3. Oman, P. W., and Cushman, D.,(Collection and preservation of insects)U.S.
department of agriculture . pp:15-21
4. Borror, D. J., and White, R. E., 1970 (insects) Houghton Mifflin Company.
New York. pp:4-15