Bioplastic Resin as a Preservation Medium for Insect Comparative Effectiveness of Polyester Resin and Catalysts

Learning media is one of the important tools in the learning process because it can increase the effectiveness and efficiency of learning. In the field of biology education and related sciences such as agriculture, learning about the morphology of living things requires preserved specimens as learning media. However, preserved specimens often experience morphological damage, so a method is needed to maintain the morphology of the specimen. One method that can be used is bioplastic preservation using resin. This study aims to determine the best composition comparison between polyester resin and various catalyst concentrations in making insect bioplastic preservation. This study involved five treatments, namely control in the form of dry insect preservation, 100:0.50 ml, 100:0.75 ml, 100:1 ml, and 100:1.25 ml. Observations were made using a digital microscope to determine the differences in insect morphology in each treatment more specifically. The results showed that the resin treatment and various catalyst concentrations produced insect bioplastic preservation with better resistance than the control treatment and the same good appearance as the control treatment. The conclusion of this study is that bioplastic preservation is an effective method for preserving insects with preserved specimen morphology so that it can be used as an effective and efficient learning medium in biology learning, especially in applied biology such as entomology.