#3
Post
by TonyT » Thu Jan 21, 2021 10:40 pm
Mounting whole insects in either Euparal or Canada Balsam is a well-tried and proven method.
A far simpler method, perhaps more suitable for a beginner, is to mount in "Glycerin Glue", a mixture of glycerin and a polyvinyl alcohol-based glue.
To make the mounting medium add 1mL water to 4mL of glycerin, mix carefully to avoid bubbles. Carefully add, to avoid bubbles, 4mL of "Elmer's Clear Washable School Glue".
Both products are cheap and readily available. The final mix is crystal clear.
Place an insect, in a small amount of water, on a slide; add a drop of mountant. The mountant will shrink as water evaporates. About every 4 hours (during the day) check to see if insect is still covered with mountant, if not add another drop.
After about a day much of the water will have evaporated, can then add a small drop to wet the surface and add a cover slip.
Best to add sufficient mountant so that a ring of excess mountant exists around the edge of the cover slip, this will prevent the medium completely drying out.
REF: Zander 2014. Four water-soluble mounting media for microslides. Phytoneuron 2014-32 1-4.
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