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Insect Designs has been on the Internet since 2003. We are currently the largest supplier of quality insect specimens in Australia, and we ship worldwide. This blog features the latest news from our store as well as the occasional interesting news we have uncovered about the wonderful world of bugs.
If you would like to view the range of insect specimens we have available, please visit our store.

Wednesday, January 13, 2010

Grading of Butterfly Specimens

Customers often ask about the grading of butterflies being offered for sale. As butterflies are not a manufactured product, quality of specimens can vary greatly, especially if they have been flying around for a while.

Below is the grading system we use at Insect Designs. Most resellers use the same grading system.

A1 - This refers to perfect quality specimens with no damage, or as perfect as you can get from a wild caught specimen. Sometimes a grading of EP is used for farmed specimens harvested as soon as they have emerged. At Insect Designs we use A1 for both farmed and wild caught specimens.

A1- - This refers to specimens with very minor damage such as antenna damage, a tiny chip or a small scratch.

A- - This refers to specimens with minor damage such as antennas missing, small chips, minor scratching or some flight wear such as minor scale damage.

A2 - This refers to specimens with considerable damage such as large chips, small pieces missing from the wings, severely damaged abdomen, major scale damage, staining, small tears.

second grade - This refers to specimens with more severe damage than A2.

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