InsectNet forum

The unit tray system of specimen storage is a popular
compartmentalized and yet, mobile method of easy
specimen movement in insect collections. It has been
fully embraced by major museums and has found its
way into private collections as well.

The cardboard trays themselves are lightweight, lined
with plastozoate foam, and are wrapped in white glossy
paper. They come in a variety of sizes which accommodate
everything from single specimens on up to series of them.
They may be "shuffled" around when needed or can be re-used
as the foam typically shows no pin holes. Entire trays may
be moved without ever touching specimens.

Specialist collectors who employ this system find it pleasing
for its organized curation appearance and usefulness of
movement within the drawer.

My take or "interpretation" of this storage method is a little
diffrent from others who seek a "scientifically" organized
presentation.

I, on the other hand enjoy the (compartment) look of
things being segregated; yet what I have on hand instead
is a lot of varied insect diversity which NEEDS placement
but, cannot always get a entire drawer to itself.

Hence, when I get a fresh drawer I like to "mix-it-up" to
show insects VAST diversity and beauty within this microcosm
of insect life. There is nothing scientific about it yet, for me
each time I pull a drawer out its like surveying a box of
chocolates --- you never know what you will find inside !



As an aesthetic collector of some varied tastes I find
my "interpretation" has a certain appeal about it.

Perhaps, not for everyone but, maybe thought provoking
for some....

Some other examples below:

Lovely drawers Trehopr.
Personally think aesthetics are very important. I doubt any of us would have taken up this hobby if insects were not so incredibly beautiful.
I think Plastazote is one of the best things to happen to our hobby. Lost count of how many times I have moved things around. Plastazote allows you to do this with comparative ease.

Beautiful drawers Trehopr, the only problem for me is that with 85 drawers, if I mix things up I will never be able to find anything. And 85 is probably a small number for most.

Unit trays look organized, and being organized is a wonderful thing. I have limited space and trays would cost space for me. A small number of cases
is 15 18"x 12" .
They are organized though. My collection is nearly all self caught, or raised. There are a lot of ways to organize specimens. it depends on how much
of a particular group there is- whatever that group is.

Here is yet another version.



Now, don't get me wrong as this is not the (total)
approach to my collection arrangements.

These drawers presently only occupy (1/4) of my
collection. Most of my collection is fitted-out to
"specific" needs. Some are dedicated to a family
of things, others a genus, and yet in some cases
(a singular species).

Here is one of my species drawers.



Here is one of my genus drawers.



Variety is the "spice" of life.....

I like the "blended" drawers also. I enjoy not knowing what to expect, unless I'm looking for something specific. Here are a few of mine. No unit trays here:

58chevy wrote: Sat Feb 25, 2023 8:54 pm I like the "blended" drawers also. I enjoy not knowing what to expect, unless I'm looking for something specific. Here are a few of mine. No unit trays here:

Those are fantastic 58chevy. Really lovely specimens.

Those are indeed very nice 58chevy !
Wonderful.series there and nice specimens.

Personally I like to keep things sorted taxonomically just so I know where to find things. Those drawers do look nice though. Do you have issues with the PDCB evaporating and then recrystallizing on the oily abdomens of the male Saturniids? That’s the main reason I don’t use PDCB to protect my collection.

Trehopr1 wrote: Sat Feb 25, 2023 7:40 am The unit tray system of specimen storage is a popular
compartmentalized and yet, mobile method of easy
specimen movement in insect collections. It has been
fully embraced by major museums and has found its
way into private collections as well...

Very nice!

58chevy wrote: Sat Feb 25, 2023 8:54 pm I like the "blended" drawers also. I enjoy not knowing what to expect, unless I'm looking for something specific. Here are a few of mine. No unit trays here:...

That drawer of US moths is especially eye-catching! I've always been fascinated by Saturniidae, although I never seriously got into collecting them, and have less than 10 species. On that note, it might be interesting to start up a thread about one of my favorite groups in this family, the genus Rothschildia of the American tropics, two of which (R. cinctus & R. lebeau) range into the US (southern AZ & far southern TX, respectively) -

https://bugguide.net/node/view/357808

https://bugguide.net/node/view/28931

Although it used to be extremely rare in the US, R. cinctus started being collected more commonly around 2004 in a couple of spots in SE AZ. We don’t really know why this happened. It can be really common now though. I reared it last year from eggs when a female came to my lights.

In my opinion the hardest US Saturniids to find are the Calosaturnias, especially C. mendocino and walterorum. C. albofasciata may be rarer in collections, but it is far more forgiving to collect.

Evra, this is the first I've heard what used to be called "Saturnia" being called "Calosaturnia". When did the reclassification happen? Is there still a "Saturnia" genus?

I think the 3 species were originally designated as Calosaturnia in the early 1900s when they were described, and then were reclassified as Saturnia in the 1970s because of the apparent similarities with S. pavonia from Europe. Then in 2020 they were revised again, and they were considered distinct enough from the Old World Saturnias to be placed back in their original genus. To my knowledge the Old World species are still Saturnia.

Most of the specimens people have in their collections are ex-pupa from many generations-old lab stock. Not many people have collected any of the 3 Calosaturnias in the wild, even collectors in California.

C. walterorum is my personal nemesis, although I now have a bunch. Although they have a long flight window during the year, February-May, they only fly during really warm days a few days after a rain. So you typically only get a 2-3 day flight window every couple of weeks. On top of that, the males only fly for about an hour, between around 10-11 AM. It is quite rare to get one in the afternoon. On top of that, they aren’t anywhere near as common as Hemileucas. If you see 10 male walterorum in a day you’ve been quite lucky. And they are very fast fliers. And they are about the same size and color as painted ladies and California tortoiseshells, so there are all kinds of decoys flying around at the same time distracting you.

C. albofasciata on the other hand, is much more predictable. In S. CA they seem to fly in the first week of November every year. The males also fly for only about 1 hour per day, between 5-6 PM. They are much more common, it’s not uncommon to see dozens, but they are very small and extremely fast and hard to net. Then the females fly between 6-7 PM after dark and come to lights.

Evra, can you show us pictures of the three species of Saturniidae that you mention in your above post ?

I like Saturniids but, there are a number of genera I'm simply unfamiliar with or not up to speed on. Pic's would be nice on these....

Here are some of the ones I have personally collected. C. walterorum on the left, C. albofasciata on the right. There’s also an Agapema dyari on the right side as well.

Lovely specimens and preparation evra !

Those are some great self-captures. I have not seen these before. Thank you so much for providing a picture for those of us non-specialists. Your knowledge of their habits is very impressive....

Nice presentation, evra. A genus I find fascinating but without time to focus on- and I'm generally not anywhere near their range. Thanks for posting the photo.

Evra,
Where/when were they collected?

In S. CA in the San Diego area mostly. The walterorum are from late March to mid April. The albofasciata are from the first week in November.