A Complete Guide on Bug Pinning from Start to Finish

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Expert tips for collecting, thawing, and displaying your bug collection
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If you want to start building up an insect collection, it’s so easy to find and pin any bug that you find. Pinning is the perfect way to preserve and display insects, but it takes some care not to damage your specimens. Keep reading, and we’ll walk through the pinning process from collecting, relaxing, and displaying your insects. We also spoke with entomologist Samuel Ramsey Ph.D and biologist Shweta Sharma to learn more about how to keep your insects safe while you’re pinning them.

Best Way to Pin Insects

  1. Collect dead insects or catch bugs in a jar with tissues soaked in nail polish remover.
  2. Rehydrate stiff insects in a container with damp paper towels.
  3. Stick an entomological pin through the middle of the insect's body and into foam.
  4. Position and pin the legs and antennae.
  5. Let the insect dry and stiffen for 2-3 days.
  6. Remove the leg pins and move the insect to a display case.
Section 1 of 5:

Collecting Insects for Pinning

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  1. If you found a dead insect at home, in your yard, or anywhere outside that you’d like to preserve, just pick it up and place it in a container. While insects that have died in the past few days work the best, it’s possible to pin older insects that have dried out after you rehydrate them .
    • Entomologist Samuel Ramsey, Ph.D states “as [insects] die, their soft tissue begins to decompose, and it is a lot more difficult to move regions of the body.”
    • Avoid insects that are really small, like aphids, or have soft bodies, like caterpillars or silverfish, because they can shrivel up and lose their original shape after you pin them. [1]
    • Be careful handling dead insects that have stingers because you can still injure yourself. Use a pair of tweezers or wear thick gloves to transport them.
    • To keep butterfly and moth wings safe, fold a piece of paper into a triangle and place the insect inside.
  2. Kill live insects in a jar using a tissue soaked with ethyl acetate . Place a few tissues at the bottom of a large jar, and pour in enough ethyl acetate (nail polish remover) to dampen the tissues. Seal the lid to trap the fumes. After you catch an insect , place it in the jar and close the lid so it’s airtight. Wait until the insect stops moving, which usually takes a couple of minutes for small insects or up to 30 minutes for larger ones. [2]
    • Separate large and small insects into separate jars so none of them get eaten.
    • Alternatively, collect bugs in a plastic bag or resealable container, and place them in your freezer for a couple of hours to kill the insects. [3]
    • Look for insects to pin in your yard, near outdoor lights, under rocks, or on plant leaves.
    • If you’re trying to catch a fast or flying insect, use a net to capture them.
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  3. If you don’t plan on pinning the insects immediately, keep them in an airtight container in your freezer to stop them from drying out. [4] Biologist Shweta Sharma says that insects can be kept for a longer period of time in the freezer than if you left them at room temperature.
    • Insects will start to dry out and become stiff the longer you leave them in the freezer, but you can rehydrate frozen insects easily to soften them again.
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Section 2 of 5:

How to Thaw and Rehydrate Insects

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  1. If you’ve only had your insects in the freezer for a day or so, then take them out and let them sit at room temperature. Test moving the legs with a toothpick to see if they feel loose. If they’re still stiff, let the insects thaw for a few more minutes. [5]
    • If your insect still isn’t pliable or flexible, avoid forcing it to move because you could damage it.
  2. A relaxing chamber creates a moist, humid space that helps soften the insects again so you’re able to pin them. Take a few sheets of paper towels and dampen them with water. Wring out the excess water, and place them in the bottom of a resealable container or jar. [6]
    • Too much moisture can cause mold to form on the insects, so be sure to dump out any excess water. To help prevent mold, you may also soak the paper towels in a 50/50 solution of water and rubbing alcohol.
  3. Use a small plastic lid or a Petri dish on top of the damp paper towels. Leave the dried or frozen insects in the dish. Then, seal the container so it’s airtight. [7]
    • If you’re relaxing multiple insects, stack them between layers of paper towels
  4. Place the container somewhere it won’t be disturbed to let the insects relax and rehydrate. After a few days, use a toothpick or pin and try moving the legs and antennae. If they easily move, then the insects are ready to pin. [8]
    • Larger beetles and hard insects may take 5-6 days to relax.
    • If the legs are still stiff, don’t try to force them to move. Place the insect back into the container and wait another day or so before you check them again.
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Section 3 of 5:

How to Pin Bugs

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  1. Place your insect on a foam board or pinning block . A pinning block has multiple steps for pinning insects and labels at different heights, but styrofoam is a cheap alternative. Lay the insect flat on the foam where you want to pin it.
    • Ramsay says “the foam allows you to easily remove the insect… by pulling on the pin so you can look at it from different angles.”
  2. Push an entomological pin through the insect’s thorax. Only use pins that are made for displaying insects because others could rust or damage the bugs. Leave about 1 ⁄ 2 inch (1.3 cm) of space between the top of the pin and the insect. Where you place the pin depends on the type of insect you’re working with: [9]
    • Bees, wasps, and flies: Place the pin through the thorax (middle section) between the front wings and slightly right of the center
    • True bugs (cicadas and shield bugs): Put the pin through the scutellum, or the triangular area between the wings
    • Grasshoppers and crickets: Place the pin through the saddle-shaped prothorax to the right of the center
    • Beetles: Pin through the front of the right wing cover just off center
    • Other insects: Put the pin through the thorax just right of the center
    • If you have an insect that’s too small to pin, cut out a small triangular piece of an index card. Stick it on the pin about 1 ⁄ 2 inch (1.3 cm) below the head. Put a tiny dot of glue on the outermost corner of the triangle, and carefully attach the bug to it.
    EXPERT TIP

    Samuel Ramsey, PhD

    Entomologist
    Dr. Samuel Ramsey is an Entomologist and a researcher with the United States Department of Agriculture. Dr. Ramsey has extensive knowledge of symbiosis and specializes in insect disease spread, parasite behavior, mutualism development, biological control, invasive species ecology, pollinator health, and insect pest control. He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Entomology from Cornell University and a Ph.D. in Entomology from the University of Maryland. Dr. Ramsey’s research on bees has enabled researchers to develop targeted control techniques to restore honey bee populations worldwide. He also hosts a YouTube series called “Dr. Buggs.”
    Samuel Ramsey, PhD
    Entomologist

    Pins are usually pushed through the right side of the insect's body. Most people pin through on the right side of an insect because there is oftentimes a suture running down the middle of the body that makes it more difficult for you to push a pin directly through there.

  3. Use a pin or a toothpick to gently move the legs and antennae into a different position. When you’re happy with the placement, cross 2 pins in an X-shape over each section of the leg and antenna. [10]
    • Try positioning the foot of each leg first before pinning the rest of the leg in place.
    • If you want a professional-looking display, try to make the legs symmetrical on each side.
  4. Leave your insect in a safe place where it won’t get disturbed while it dries. [11] After a few days and the insect dries, Ramsay says that it will be frozen in that position and become very delicate.
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Section 4 of 5:

Pinning Insects with Large Wings

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  1. Pin the insect through the thorax and onto a spreading board . When you’re working with butterflies, moths, dragonflies, or any other insect with larger wings, stick the entomological pin straight through the middle of its thorax. Pin the insect into the groove of your spreading board. [12]
    • A spreading board has a groove running through the middle where the insect’s body fits so the wings can be spread flat on the sides.
    • Leave about 1 ⁄ 2 inch (1.3 cm) of space between the insect and the top of the pin. That way, you can handle the pin without touching or damaging the bug.
  2. To avoid pinning the wings directly and damaging them, strips of paper help hold the wings in place. Use wax, tracing, or plain white printer paper. Take a pair of scissors and cut off 2 strips so you have one for each wing. [13]
    • Make sure the paper isn’t sticky, or it could damage the wings.
    • Avoid using newspaper or colored paper, which could potentially stain the wings.
  3. Take one of your paper strips and slide it between the wings of the insect. Gently guide one of the wings down until it’s even with the spreading board. [14]
    • Ramsay says to make sure the insect is fresh or relaxed. He says, “ if you try to move [an old butterfly’s] wings, you're going to break the wing off of the butterfly's body.”
    • If the wing won’t move or open, try relaxing the insect again.
  4. Hold the wing down against the spreading board with the strip of paper. Stick a pin through the paper just above the wing and push it into the spreading board. Place another pin through the paper just below the bottom of the wing. [15]
    • Have a friend pin the ends of the paper while you carefully hold the wing open if you’re having trouble doing it on your own.
  5. Take your other strip of paper and gently press the other wing down so it’s even with the spreading board. Pin the top and bottom of the paper so both wings are held open by strips of paper. [16]
    • If you need to move or reposition the wings, use a pin to gently guide them into the shape you want.
  6. Use the end of a pin to move the legs and antennae into their final positions. When you’re happy with how they look, place 2 pins that cross in an X-shape over each section of the limb so it stays in place. [17]
  7. Place the pinned insect in a safe place where it won’t be disturbed. Keep the strips of paper pinned for a few days so the insect has a chance to completely dry out. [18]
    • If the wings move or begin to close after you remove the strips, open them back up and let them dry for another day or so.
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Section 5 of 5:

How to Display Insects

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  1. Once the insect dries, carefully pull the pins straight out in the same direction you pushed them in. Work slowly until you remove all of the pins except for the main one through the middle of your insect. [19]
    • Be extremely careful because the insect will be brittle and could break easily.
  2. Mount the pinned bug to an insect display case . Use an insect display case specially designed to hold and show off your cool bug collection. With the bug still attached, pull the pin out from the foam board, pinning block, or spreading board, and stick it to the mounting surface of the display case. Make sure the pin is securely attached so it won’t fall out.
  3. You can place the labels below the insect on the pin, or place them in the display case next to it. Write down what type of bug it is, where you found it, and the date you collected it. [20]
    • If you’re using a pinning block, the lower steps are set at the perfect heights for labels.
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      Warnings

      • Always be careful handling insects that have stingers or can bite. Use tweezers to handle them instead of picking them up by hand.
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      Expert Interview

      Thanks for reading our article! If you'd like to learn more about pinning insects, check out our in-depth interview with Shweta Sharma .

      References

      1. ↑ https://entmuseum.ucr.edu/guides-faqs/specimen-preparation
      2. ↑ https://www.discoverlife.org/png/preserving_insects.pdf
      3. ↑ https://extension.oregonstate.edu/pests-weeds-diseases/insects/collecting-insects-related-arthoropods
      4. ↑ https://www.uidaho.edu/-/media/UIdaho-Responsive/Files/Extension/4-H/projects/82358.pdf
      5. ↑ https://www.uidaho.edu/-/media/UIdaho-Responsive/Files/Extension/4-H/projects/82358.pdf
      6. ↑ https://arthropods.nmsu.edu/making-an-insect-collection/setting-up-a-relaxing-chamber.html
      7. ↑ https://arthropods.nmsu.edu/making-an-insect-collection/setting-up-a-relaxing-chamber.html
      8. ↑ https://youtu.be/EXXCn0jwsrs?t=71
      9. ↑ https://www.uidaho.edu/-/media/UIdaho-Responsive/Files/Extension/4-H/projects/82358.pdf
      1. ↑ https://ansp.org/~/media/Files/ans/science-from-home/camp/ASCFH_Week7_HowToPreserveYourCollection.ashx?la=en
      2. ↑ https://ipm.ifas.ufl.edu/pdfs/insect_collecting_101_for_MGs_and_4H.pdf
      3. ↑ https://www.uidaho.edu/-/media/UIdaho-Responsive/Files/Extension/4-H/Projects/82358.pdf
      4. ↑ https://extension.entm.purdue.edu/401Book/default.php?page=spreading_wings
      5. ↑ https://www.uidaho.edu/-/media/UIdaho-Responsive/Files/Extension/4-H/Projects/82358.pdf
      6. ↑ https://extension.oregonstate.edu/sites/default/files/documents/9591/pinning-insects.pdf
      7. ↑ https://extension.entm.purdue.edu/401Book/default.php?page=spreading_wings
      8. ↑ https://extension.oregonstate.edu/pests-weeds-diseases/insects/pinning-labeling-insects-0
      9. ↑ https://extension.oregonstate.edu/pests-weeds-diseases/insects/pinning-labeling-insects-0
      10. ↑ https://extension.oregonstate.edu/pests-weeds-diseases/insects/pinning-labeling-insects-0
      11. ↑ https://extension.entm.purdue.edu/401Book/default.php?page=labeling_specimens

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