That may be the case for some collections cases. Others, such as Viking/Interior Steel can be elevated to allow for vacuuming beneath the case. This has been done in the mammals collection at CMNH (Carnegie Museum of Natural History). As far as I can see there has been no structural damage to these cases by doing this.
Gretchen Anderson Conservator Carnegie Museum of Natural History ________________________________ From: pestlist-ow...@museumpests.net [mailto:pestlist-ow...@museumpests.net] On Behalf Of bugma...@aol.com Sent: Wednesday, May 05, 2010 7:49 AM To: pestlist@museumpests.net Subject: Re: [pestlist] Clothes Moth Eating Habits Cathy - It would be great if the cases were elevated and open beneath, but a kickplate actually is there for structural support of the weight of the cases; you can't simply eliminate it. Tom Parker -----Original Message----- From: Catharine Hawks <caha...@aol.com> To: pestlist@museumpests.net Sent: Wed, May 5, 2010 6:55 am Subject: Re: [pestlist] Clothes Moth Eating Habits Better still, eliminate the kick plate and vacuum under the cases regularly. Cathy Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry ________________________________ From: bugma...@aol.com Date: Tue, 04 May 2010 18:11:35 -0400 To: <pestlist@museumpests.net> Subject: Re: [pestlist] Clothes Moth Eating Habits David - I have found lots of protein debris in the void space beneath natural history specimen ranges. In order to address this problem, the kick plate at the bottom of the cases should be drilled and Drione dust injected into the void space beneath the cabinetry. Drione is a combination of pyrethrum and fine silica gel dessicant. Even if the pyrethrum dissipates in time, the silica gel dessicant will remain as an effective insecticide for years, as long as it doesn't get wet. If you don't have Drione in England, either straight silica gel (finely divided powder) or diatomaceous earth can be used as a dessicant dust. Tom Parker -----Original Message----- From: David Pinniger <da...@pinniger.globalnet.co.uk> To: pestlist@museumpests.net Sent: Tue, May 4, 2010 2:51 am Subject: Re: [pestlist] Clothes Moth Eating Habits It seems that some pests have changed their habits! Although I previously thought that clothes moths would only live in substantial amounts of wool, fur or feathers in objects, in recent years we have found them in organic debris. Three very large London Museums have serious Tineola moth problems which emanate from huge amounts of dirt and debris in dead spaces. The dead spaces are either under floorboards or behind and under displays which cannot be cleaned. This seems to be made up of large amounts of hair, skin and fragments of clothing and so provides sufficient nutrition for the larvae. Some fragments of human food from functions and cafes provide the seasoning! By the way, these deposits also support Anthrenus and Attagenus larvae, sometimes in large numbers. The pests can then of course spread into exhibits and infest them. The images will give you some idea of the problem. We all need to work with museum designers to prevent them creating these uncleanable voids. David ----- Original Message ----- From: Rick Kerschner <mailto:rkersch...@shelburnemuseum.org> To: pestlist@museumpests.net Sent: Monday, May 03, 2010 5:21 PM Subject: RE: [pestlist] Clothes Moth Eating Habits Hi Tom, I understand that insects can feed on human detritus in floor cracks. What would surprise me would be if that were the main attraction and only food source for an infestation in the building. As you note states, they started in a dead pigeon and then moved to the tastier banner, eventually ending up in the floor crack and beyond. Rick ________________________________ From: pestlist-ow...@museumpests.net [mailto:pestlist-ow...@museumpests.net <mailto:pestlist-ow...@museumpests.net?> ] On Behalf Of bugma...@aol.com Sent: Sunday, May 02, 2010 3:59 PM To: pestlist@museumpests.net Subject: Re: [pestlist] Clothes Moth Eating Habits Richard - At a major museum in Chicago, I did find WCM larvae feeding on hair and detritus lodged between the bricks of a trolley exhibit. They started in a trapped, dead pigeon, then moved to a wool felt banner mounted high up on the wall of the trolley exhibit, ended up between the bricks, and then on to a pioneer life exhibit. Tom Parker -----Original Message----- From: Rick Kerschner <rkersch...@shelburnemuseum.org> To: pestlist@museumpests.net Sent: Fri, Apr 30, 2010 9:03 am Subject: RE: [pestlist] Clothes Moth Eating Habits My experience reflects Molly's observations. Whenever I have found insect infestations they have been on particularly "tasty" artifacts, e.g. taxidermy mounts, fur mukluks, wool interior of a carriage, that have been in storage in poor conditions and not vacuumed for ages. With one exception, I cannot remember a carpet beetle or moth infestation on an artifact on exhibition that is vacuumed even only yearly. That exception is our hunting lodge filled with taxidermy specimens. We did find carpet beetles on the specimens, especially in the horns, after 55 years on exhibit and they had been there at a low level for quite a while. However, this infestation was not due to detritus carried into the building by visitors. The artifacts themselves were the source of the food for the insects. Although I guess that it is possible for insects to be attracted to small amounts of protein left by visitors as they tour our buildings, I doubt that this source or nourishment is the cause of significant collections infestations. Better to look for a dead bird or rodent in the walls, or a high-protein artifact that had not seen the light of day or the brush of a vacuum for years. Richard L. Kerschner Director of Preservation and Conservation Shelburne Museum PO Box 10, Route 7 Shelburne, VT 05482 (802) 985-3348 x3361 rkersch...@shelburnemuseum.org ________________________________ From: pestlist-ow...@museumpests.net [mailto:pestlist-ow...@museumpests.net <mailto:pestlist-ow...@museumpests.net?> ] On Behalf Of Molly Gleeson Sent: Thursday, April 29, 2010 4:08 PM To: pestlist@museumpests.net Subject: Re: [pestlist] Clothes Moth Eating Habits This is interesting, however, I'm wondering how many instances there are of collections becoming infested by clothes moth larvae while on display? I guess I've never heard of that, but I'd be interested to know if this is a frequent occurrence and a problem. We generally don't let the public in storage areas, and, in my limited experience, that is where the majority of these infestations occur. best, Molly Molly Gleeson Conservator of Archaeological and Ethnographic Objects San Diego, CA ________________________________ From: Heather Thomas <call...@bulldoghome.com> To: pestlist@museumpests.net Sent: Thu, April 29, 2010 12:42:12 PM Subject: Re: [pestlist] Clothes Moth Eating Habits Thanks for that Thomas. I thought that WCM would eat skin as they attack taxidermy specimens, leather and dried animal remains or is it only the fur, hair and feathers they eat? I'm starting to realise our collections would be a lot safer if we didn't let the public in the our museums. :-) On 29 Apr 2010, at 19:50, bugma...@aol.com wrote: Heather - When I give an IPPM lecture, I tell my audience a visitor drops 3 hairs and one fingernail per visit. WCM larvae will readily feed on the hair, but usually not the fingernails. Carpet beetles will feed on the fingernails. I know of nothing, which will damage collections, which will feed on skin cells. The public doesn't drop feathers. Generally I have found younger instars feeding on the debris in cracks between floor boards and bricks in a museum. Although I haven't seen it, I am assuming in a large public museum, there's enough protein debris for a WCM larva to complete its development and pupate utilizing the protein materials dropped by the public. Thomas A. Parker, PhD President, Entomologist Pest Control Services, Inc.
