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Post by nomad on Oct 5, 2014 2:54:31 GMT -8
I went to the AES fair yesterday and came home with a bag full of books and these for my collection. I do not collect Lycaenidae.  So far that is. The Scarce Large Blue- Maculinea (Phengaris) teleius. Although endangered in parts of Western Europe these are from further East. They have some good data. First female left - Ukraine, Petrovka village 25.7. 11. First male left Russia South Urals, Katav-Ivanovsk district. July 2013. Bottom Pair - Ukraine, Kharkov, Zaljurtino. July 2011.  |
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Post by timmsyrj on Oct 5, 2014 4:03:22 GMT -8
Very nice specimens, check out the auction in the announcements section, look at page 7 , lot no 130, all those maculinea for an estimate 200-250 euro, bottom left drawer has some nice underside vars.
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Post by trehopr1 on Oct 5, 2014 17:48:08 GMT -8
Wow ! Nomad. For a guy who doesn't collect Lycaenidae I'd say you have the "Eye" for collecting them. Those are beautifully prepared specimens. I would look for that dealers stall whenever possible... Seriously, well prepared Lycaenids and Riodinids are really tough to find in collections or for sale. As I'm sure you know most collectors across the board do a pretty crummy job of preparing them. It really takes a special person who has a real love of the group and exemplary skill (with patience) to get those kind of results. Those individual's are few and far between. I have collected small butterflies like those over the last 10 or 12 years and have only amassed about 60 such specimens of that quality ! ! Hope you continue snapping up those little gems whenever you can find them.
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Post by rayrard on Oct 5, 2014 22:32:27 GMT -8
It would be great if there was a video of someone pinning a lycaenid or hesperiid without putting holes in the wings
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Post by nomad on Oct 6, 2014 0:40:24 GMT -8
I expect there are those that specialize in these butterflies, that have setting Lycaenidae down to a fine art. As can be seen from the image above. When I have viewed butterfly spreading-setting videos, they always shows the guy or women using a bigger butterfly, usually a large Papilionidae, often a birdwing. You are not going to use your fingers with Lycaenidae as shown in one video I have seen. These Lycaenidae are much better prepared when freshly caught. Years ago, I used to collect British Lycaenidae and always pinned them fresh. I always used to use a setting needle, but had the eyesight then of a young man. Today, I notice that a lot of of lepidopterists now use a very fine pair of pointed forceps, sometimes just on the forewing and a few use them on both wings. If Lycaenidae pose problems, image spreading tiny microlepidoptera.
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Post by rayrard on Oct 6, 2014 10:03:04 GMT -8
So how do you do it? If you have one hand on the forceps, do you lift the FW up to position and apply the cover strip with a pin, and then do the HW? Do you get the "popped" HW and how do you fix it?
The biggest issue is the cover strip interfering with my wing arrangement, because the strip is physically on top of the whole wing in these small lycaenids. Do you use a thin strip at the base and pull tight when the wing is in place?
Yeah a video would be great
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Post by trehopr1 on Oct 6, 2014 11:40:28 GMT -8
Setting lycaenidae or any other small butterflies is a fine art to be sure! Preparing them up fresh AND quickly --- before rigor sets in is a universal certainty. The challenge is manipulating those delicate wings without punching holes,scratching wings,and removing the hairs at the edges of those wings. It requires a sharp eye, slight hand, and a methodology learned through trial and error. This was told to me by a collector from Indiana whom I met some years ago at a Lep Society meeting. I first saw this man showing another collector a Schmitt box of "small stuff".Upon closer examination, I realized that I had happened upon a "specialist collector" in this fine art. His work was absolutely impeccable.... He remarked that it did indeed take him some time to develop his methodology for such small things. However, he felt very much pleased that he had mastered his technique and was in fact taking it a step further by re-inventing or re-structuring his method for micro-moths. Those impossibly small items however, required nothing short of microscope work he said. While he did not elaborate on the fine points of his method; suffice it to say it was OBVIOUS that standard techniques for lep preparation were not employed. And I've got say when you do come across that extraordinary individual who takes things up "another level" you cannot help but be humbled by their presence. In other words, when you meet that MASTER JEDI of entomological technique OR knowledge --- tip your hat, do a ceremonial bow, or just tell him "damn your good-rock on".
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So far that is. The Scarce Large Blue- Maculinea (Phengaris) teleius. Although endangered in parts of Western Europe these are from further East. They have some good data.
