The most critical portion of any sort of study is the collection of accurate
data. To ensure that the spider visual record or voucher specimen is to be
of most value it is crucial that information about the record be made in written
form. The best way to do this is to write it down immediately.
Memory is imperfect and often incomplete. If you write down the particulars of
where a spider was found, including the situation as well as location, there is
a greater chance that you will provide accurate and complete data. For
spider specimens, this means putting a label directly into the vial with the
spider. Labels glued or tied to the outside of the container inevitably
are lost or inadvertently exchanged with other labels. Labels in the fluid
with the spider are much safer. Obviously the label must be relatively
small to fit in a vial, but with care a clear label can be written on a small
slip of durable paper or a piece cut from a note card. Most professional
biologists use permanent-ink pens for labels, these can be obtained from art or
office supply stores as ?India ink? or ?permanent ink? pens. Alcohol will
dissolve most inks, so you need to test the ink in alcohol. Ball-point pen
inks are almost always unsuitable. The most inexpensive method is to write
in pencil. This is permanent in alcohol and will not fade with time.
Some workers print labels for commonly-visited localities. This is an
excellent method provided that the printing is permanent. Sadly, most
computer printer inks are water or alcohol soluble. Laser printed and photocopy
labels will work in the short term but after ten years or so the lettering may
fall off the paper. There is nothing like the experience of picking up a
vial with a valued specimen and noticing that the label has dissolved or that
the lettering has separated and lies like black alphabet soup at the bottom of
the vial!
The label itself must include the exact locality and date that the spider
was collected. Additional information about the technique used and the
particular situation can be written on the back of the label. You may also
wish to include a field number that refers to more extensive notes which you may
record in a field notebook. If you do this you should provide a copy of
these field notes at the time of contribution of the specimen to a museum
collection.
Sample Label:
Front of Label Back of Label
|
OH, Marion Co. 2 km SW Marion in old field near road 12 OCT 1998 |
collected by sweep net at 11 am |
to Voucher Specimens & Collecting Spiders
to Permits
to Fluids for Preserving Spider Specimens