legal???

[hunterzach]

I was wanting to put a monarch butterfly on one of my mounts but i heard that they are protected, but yet i still see other taxidermists using them.  Is it really legal.  and if so how do you preserve them??

[George Roof]

Years ago, I used to sell them in arrangements.  There were zillions of them.  But now, overdeveloping has removed much of their life giving milkweed plants and their home grounds in Mexico have been threatened by snow, fire, and tree cutting.  Many places do list them as "protected" insects.  YOu'd be wise to check with your DNR folks to see if your area is one of these.

[Moose5222]

You may want to go to Hobby Lobby or Michaels and look at the butterflies that they sell....come in different sizes and colors, pretty good looking and will take some abuse over the years. I used to shade them a little and they were fine for commercial work.

A real Monarch butterfly, (even if allowed in your state)  preserved properly or not, probably won't stand up to any commercial abuse as the wings and legs would be very fragile...if I were to use one, it would be on a mount in a glass case to protect it.