Microscopy Forum

Hi

I share your interest in wings and scales, particularly of old slides and those scales of species used as early test objects.

The old slides of butterfly wings in my modest collection use simple mounting techniques. A piece of wing typically less than 1 square cm in size has been cut and mounted dry, in a raised circular cell and sealed typically with black ringing.

When scales were mounted, especially if a test object, they were usually mounted dry. So would have had a slip placed on and again sealed around edge.

I do have one more modern commercial mount of a whole wing of a Monarch butterfly. This exploits the modern very very large (but possibly expensive coverslips that are available. This coverslip was just taped either end.

Although permanent mounts of scales are useful, its arguable if a slip covering on a wing aids its study. As epi techniques and epi objectives are ideally designed for uncovered subjects. Also the slip causes glare for simpler epi techniques. So keeping a part of whole wing specimen dust free and bringing out for study is one approach.

regards

David