These are a couple preserves I did of a L2 Chinese nymph and a L1 orchid nymph that didn't make it. I wasn't sure if I could pull it off but they turned out better then I thought.
They're in hand sanitizer. I let them dry for a couple days and then soak in hand sanitizer for about a week before putting them in the vials and sealing them up.
Looks great. I watched a few you tube videos on that. I'm going to have to try it. They say the specimens will stay floating like that forever. I got a bunch of wheel bug nymphs and one arrived dead. I'll have to try it.
Yeah I've tried shaking them around and they don't move at all. I used 3ml glass vials I bought off ebay really cheap. Be very careful as the dried nymphs are super fragile and can break easy. I would only let smaller nymphs dry for maybe a couple days instead of a week like alot of the YouTube videos I watched said. The orchid dried for only 2 or 3 days before I soaked it in hand sanitzer and it was easier to move around then the Chinese that I let dry for over a week. Good luck and post some pics when you finish them.
Thanks for the tips and info. I may try this with some exoskeletons as well. Probably no need to dry them much at all. I have a bunch of D. diadema of all sizes. The trick will be to find a vial or jar that would allow a decent display. I'll look for some short squat jars maybe like those some makeup comes in. Looks like a trip to American Science and Surplus is in order.
I kind of thought about trying it with exoskeletons too. I wouldn't think they would need to be dried out at all either. I also probably wouldn't even soak them very long or they might just fall apart trying to get them in the jar. Good luck and let me know how it goes!