Gurders Mantis

 

Preserving mantis

It is possible to preserve your mantis after they have died by the process of pinning.

This can make a nice display piece. There are various different methods of doing this here my guide to pinning.

Equipment needed:

Entomological pins, dressmaker pins, piece of polystyrene and a bit of MDF.

For larger female species dissection of the abdomen is normally needed to prevent rotting and a nasty smell. I cut the abdomen on the underside in the middle of the abdomen, and then remove the contents. I use a bit of cotton wool to fill the abdomen back up to try and make it look as natural as possible.

Step 1:

 

Place your recently dead mantis face down on the polystyrene. If the mantis has been dead for a while it will have stifened and it is still possible to preserve them but you will need some relaxing solution.

Step 2:

 

Insert the entomological pin through the bottom of the thorax just above the wings. You want to try and get the pin as straight as possible.

Step 3:

Using the dressmaker pins spread out the raptorial claws and pin them in position.

Step 4:

 

Again using dressmaker pins to hold them in place spread the legs out on one side of the mantis

Step 5:

Open the wings both outer and inner on the opposite side to the spread legs. This can be a tricky step as the wings have a tendency of folding back to original position. I open the outer wing then hold it in place with the piece of MDF. The inner wing is then opened and then carefully holding the outer wing in place put the MDF over the top of the wings to hold them in place.

Step 6:

I now use a couple of dressmaker pins to hold the piece of MDF in place over the wings, then place the pinned mantis into the airing cupboard for a couple of weeks or more to completely dry out.

Finished product:

Here is most of my preserved mantis in display cases that I have made.