How do you kill a bug for a bug collection?

Question

Hi,

Okay we have to do a collection of bugs for biology. Our teacher hasn't given me much info like how to kill it or how to preserve it. So if you could give me some tips, that would be great.

thanks

Answer 1

A Good Way To Collect Bugs And Preserve Them Is To: Trap Them In Some Kind Of Container And Stick The Container In The Freezer. My Cousin Used To Do It All The Time When He Found "Cool" Bugs.

Answer 2

smash it with a brick :)

Answer 3

To make a killing jar, start out with an appropriate sized jar.  It must be made of glass, plastic will be damaged by the chemicals.  The jar should be big enough to hold the insect in question, but not too big or you end up wasting chemicals.

In the bottom of the jar, place about an inch or two of cotton or shredded newspaper, then cut a piece of cardboard into a circle slightly bigger than the inside diameter of the jar.

Pour just enough ethyl acetate into the jar to thoroughly wet the cotton or newspaper.  Pour out any excess if there is any.  Then insert the cardboard circle so that it sits just above the material.  This is to keep the insect from being damaged by the ethyl acetate.

Ethyl acetate is used in some nail polish removers.  It's not the same as acetone, which is also used in nail polish removers.  Ethyl acetate is quite flammable, so it should be used with caution around open flames.  Otherwise, it's relatively safe to handle and is not poisonous unless swallowed.

Place the insect into the jar and s***w on the cap.  Once the insect is dead, you'll want to remove it from the jar promptly, if it stays in too long, it may become soaked with the ethyl acetate.

You can also kill insects by freezing them, just place them in a plastic zip-top bag or a small jar and place in the freezer for an hour or two.  If they stay in too long, they will dry out and fall apart when you try to handle them.  Don't handle the insects until they have thawed out of delicate parts like legs or antennae may break off.  Freezing doesn't work for all insects, some can actually survive the freezing process (cockroaches, for instance).

As far as preserving insects, most have a hard exoskeleton, so they don't generally need any special attention to preserve them.  Soft bodied insects like aphids, caterpillars or larvae will decompose unless they are placed in a glass jar filled with a preservative such as ethyl alcohol.

Answer 4

i would tell the science teacher that its wrong to kill an animal and that its against you peronal views and do something different.

Answer 5

The normal way that is used is take a glass jar with lid and put some cotton balls or other cotton in bottom then pour a little rubbing alcohol into the cotton. This serves as a gas chamber for bugs and kills them quickly when they are put inside. If the fumes get weak add more rubbing alcohol.

After they die mount them on cardboard or Styrofoam with pins.

Answer 6

Use formaldehyide. colorless, odorless and is a preservative.

Answer 7

Well, there are several things you can do. With a lot of insects you can just put them in the freezer for a while, but some species will reanimate later so that doesn't always work. You can also get a killing jar that uses ethyl acetate or cyanide. The cyanide jars are quicker and more humane but they're also more dangerous to people so ethyl acetate is probably your best bet right now. They usually have a chamber in the cover of the jar that's full of cotton or made of plaster and treated with the poison. However, if your teacher hasn't provided you with anything and since you're only doing this for a basic biology class it would probably be fine to make a slightly less complicated killing jar. You can put a damp sponge or something similar in the bottom of the jar and cover that with a later of cotton and a tissue or paper towel on top of that for the insect to sit on. You'll want to use a fair amount if you're using ethyl acetate as it's not that strong. You can also put insects in the freezer first to slow them down before transferring them to the killing jar. This is probably a better idea in the case of things like dragonflies and butterflies and other things that can damage their wings if they're flying around too much in the jar before they die. That's what I do when I'm home usually. Anyway, those are just a few suggestions I have to go but if I think of anything else I'll let you know. Good luck.

Answer 8

ether in a jar

Answer 9

You get a needle(small one)and stab it threw its body.It will kill it,and put it in a small contianer.Thats what my brother did.

Answer 10

DON'T use formaldehyde.  It is NOT odorless, and is in fact a known carcinogen (cancer causing agent).

Freezing the is the easiest way.  Make sure you put them in the freezer at least overnight, as too short of a time may result in them coming back to life at a really inappropriate moment, like when you open the box to show the teacher and they all fly away.

If it's a soft bodied insect, like a caterpillar, put it in a jar of alcohol.

Answer 11

Formaldehyde or cyanide.  For a soft worm (larva) or something, maybe alcohol (to keep it from drying out).