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</o:shapelayout></xml><![endif]--></head><body lang=EN-GB link=blue vlink=purple style='word-wrap:break-word'><div class=WordSection1><p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-fareast-language:EN-US'>Hi All<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-fareast-language:EN-US'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-fareast-language:EN-US'>It’s probably already been mentioned elsewhere, but I’ve had very good and largely mould-free results using white spirit vinegar as a relaxing agent in a well-sealed Tupperware type container. No water added. I put the flies on a piece of plastozote on top of a tissue wetted (but not soaked) with WSV and the material is usually pliable enough to be worked with in a day or two. I put the box somewhere out of the sun so that I don’t get condensation forming on the specimens, and if I do see any water-globules forming on them I carefully dab these off with a tiny strip of toilet paper.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-fareast-language:EN-US'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-fareast-language:EN-US'>Regards,<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-fareast-language:EN-US'>David<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-fareast-language:EN-US'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-fareast-language:EN-US'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><div style='border:none;border-top:solid #E1E1E1 1.0pt;padding:3.0pt 0cm 0cm 0cm'><p class=MsoNormal><b><span lang=EN-US>From:</span></b><span lang=EN-US> syrphidae-bounces@lists.nottingham.ac.uk <syrphidae-bounces@lists.nottingham.ac.uk> <b>On Behalf Of </b>lasiopa@bknet.dk<br><b>Sent:</b> 05 October 2022 09:19<br><b>To:</b> <br><b>Subject:</b> [Syrphidae] Re: relaxing flies<o:p></o:p></span></p></div><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><div><div><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif'>Hi all<o:p></o:p></span></p></div><div><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif'><o:p> </o:p></span></p></div><div><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif'>To soften dry flies before pinning, I put them into a jar with a small strip of wet wipe. This method is fast and prevents mould.<o:p></o:p></span></p></div><div><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif'><o:p> </o:p></span></p></div><div><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif'>Best wishes<o:p></o:p></span></p></div><div><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif'>Leif<o:p></o:p></span></p></div><div><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif'><o:p> </o:p></span></p></div><div><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif'> <o:p></o:p></span></p></div><div><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif'><o:p> </o:p></span></p></div><div class=MsoNormal align=center style='text-align:center'><span style='font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif'><hr size=2 width="100%" align=center id=previousmessagehr></span></div><div><p class=MsoNormal><strong><span style='font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif'>Fra</span></strong><span style='font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif'>: "Bastiaan Wakkie" <<a href="mailto:bwakkie@syrphidae.com">bwakkie@syrphidae.com</a>><br><strong><span style='font-family:"Arial",sans-serif'>Sendt</span></strong>: 04/10/2022 12.57<br><strong><span style='font-family:"Arial",sans-serif'>Til</span></strong>: <a href="mailto:syrphidae@lists.nottingham.ac.uk">syrphidae@lists.nottingham.ac.uk</a><br><strong><span style='font-family:"Arial",sans-serif'>Emne</span></strong>: [Syrphidae] Re: relaxing flies<o:p></o:p></span></p></div><div><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif'><o:p> </o:p></span></p></div><p style='margin-top:.75pt;box-sizing: border-box'><span style='font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#444444'>Hi Sander,<o:p></o:p></span></p><p style='margin-top:.75pt;box-sizing: border-box'><span style='font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#444444'>I let the dried specie sit in a closed container (plastic/glass) with some <em><span style='font-family:"Arial",sans-serif'>Prunus laurocerasus</span></em> (en:cherry laurel, nl:Laurier kers)<b><br></b>leaves<strong><span style='font-family:"Arial",sans-serif'>. </span></strong><o:p></o:p></span></p><p style='margin-top:.75pt;box-sizing: border-box'><span style='font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#444444'>The leaves need to be prepared upfront though by bruising them and left in its own closed jar for a week or so till they become brown. When you open the jar is you will smell "nl:bitterkoekjes, en:macaroons??" then you know it ready. This can be kept good for years.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p style='margin-top:.75pt;box-sizing: border-box'><span style='font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#444444'>The already brown leaves produce tiny bits of cyanide. This will help relax the dried specie.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p style='margin-top:.75pt;box-sizing: border-box'><span style='font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#444444'>With these leaves you also can keep for instance unpinned specimens relaxed during your travel so you can pin them later at home (check for fungi though, so not to wet). I also use it is as relatively good killing agent.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p style='margin-top:.75pt;box-sizing: border-box'><span style='font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#444444'>I personally use cherry laurel successfully for decades. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p style='margin-top:.75pt;box-sizing: border-box'><span style='font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#444444'>A nice anecdote: One time I only got stopped at the US customs as I declared I was taking plant material into the country, don't do that! It took me a long time to persuade the customs to let me pass into the country with cyanide, hehehe ;-)<o:p></o:p></span></p><p style='margin-top:.75pt;box-sizing: border-box'><span style='font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#444444'>Cheers,<o:p></o:p></span></p><p style='margin-top:.75pt;box-sizing: border-box'><span style='font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#444444'>Bastiaan<o:p></o:p></span></p><p style='margin-top:.75pt;box-sizing: border-box'><span style='font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#444444'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p style='margin-top:.75pt;box-sizing: border-box'><span style='font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#444444'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><div><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif'>On 9/29/22 07:48, Sander Bot wrote:<o:p></o:p></span></p></div><blockquote style='border:none;border-left:solid #5E35B1 1.5pt;padding:0cm 0cm 0cm 4.0pt;margin-left:0cm;margin-top:5.0pt;margin-bottom:5.0pt;box-sizing: border-box'><div><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#5E35B1'>Hi all,<br><br>Sometimes I need to relax flies to extract genitalia or to model them for photography. I use the method described in the attached paper, which works really well. Working with steam has one disadvantage though, the wings often wrinkle.<br>I heard there is a slower method to relax flies, which takes a day or so in which the wings do not wrinkle. Does anybody have experience with this and is happy to share this method?<br><br>Cheers,<br style='box-sizing: border-box'><br><o:p></o:p></span></p><div><div><div><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#5E35B1'>Sander<o:p></o:p></span></p></div></div></div></div><pre style='box-sizing: border-box;white-space:pre-wrap;overflow-wrap: break-word;overflow:visible'><span style='color:#5E35B1'>This message and any attachment are intended solely for the addressee<br>and may contain confidential information. If you have received this<br>message in error, please contact the sender and delete the email and<br>attachment. <br><br>Any views or opinions expressed by the author of this email do not<br>necessarily reflect the views of the University of Nottingham. Email<br>communications with the University of Nottingham may be monitored <br>where permitted by law.<br><br><br style='box-sizing: border-box'><br><o:p></o:p></span></pre><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#5E35B1'><br><br style='box-sizing: border-box'><br><o:p></o:p></span></p><pre><span style='color:#5E35B1'>_______________________________________________<br>Syrphidae mailing list<br><a href="mailto:Syrphidae@lists.nottingham.ac.uk" target="_blank"><span style='color:#006693'>Syrphidae@lists.nottingham.ac.uk</span></a><br><a href="http://lists.nottingham.ac.uk/mailman/listinfo/syrphidae" target="_blank"><span style='color:#006693'>http://lists.nottingham.ac.uk/mailman/listinfo/syrphidae</span></a><o:p></o:p></span></pre></blockquote><pre style='box-sizing: border-box;white-space:pre-wrap;overflow-wrap: break-word;overflow:visible'>-- <br>----<br>Bastiaan Wakkie<br><a href="https://www.syrphidae.com" target="_blank"><span style='color:#006693'>https://www.syrphidae.com</span></a><o:p></o:p></pre><pre style='box-sizing: border-box;white-space:pre-wrap;overflow-wrap: break-word;overflow:visible'>This message and any attachment are intended solely for the addressee<br>and may contain confidential information. If you have received this<br>message in error, please contact the sender and delete the email and<br>attachment. <br><br>Any views or opinions expressed by the author of this email do not<br>necessarily reflect the views of the University of Nottingham. Email<br>communications with the University of Nottingham may be monitored <br>where permitted by law.<br><br><br style='box-sizing: border-box'><br><o:p></o:p></pre></div><pre><o:p> </o:p></pre><pre><o:p> </o:p></pre><pre>This message and any attachment are intended solely for the addressee<o:p></o:p></pre><pre>and may contain confidential information. If you have received this<o:p></o:p></pre><pre>message in error, please contact the sender and delete the email and<o:p></o:p></pre><pre>attachment. <o:p></o:p></pre><pre><o:p> </o:p></pre><pre>Any views or opinions expressed by the author of this email do not<o:p></o:p></pre><pre>necessarily reflect the views of the University of Nottingham. Email<o:p></o:p></pre><pre>communications with the University of Nottingham may be monitored <o:p></o:p></pre><pre>where permitted by law.<o:p></o:p></pre><pre><o:p> </o:p></pre><pre><o:p> </o:p></pre><pre><o:p> </o:p></pre></div></body></html>