F.A.Q.

We have reserved this space, divided in paragraphs to make easier the consultation, for all your frequent questions.
So you'll find questions (and replies) that, in your personal opinion, will seem you stupid or intelligent, but we believe equally important for to be here included.
Therefore let's help us to increase this list with the most dissimilar or unimaginable questions that your mind may beget, sending them by e-mail. If we'll consider them such important as to be a real F.A.Q., we'll include them here in succession, and if you don't find the answer to your question you can contact us redazione@larcadinoe.com.

QUESTIONS ABOUT SALE

Is it possible the cash on delivery by Post?
-No. Owing to previous experiences, to warrant a better service we prefer to avoid this modality and not increase postage with further taxes. Besides the cash on delivery however don't assure the real receipt of the ordered items.

Why I do point out my payment to you? Mayn't you to verify it?
-You aren't obliged to do it. It comes in handy to speed up the delivery of goods and to avoid every possible miscarriage like credits of equal amount by distinct customers which names sometimes aren't immediately verifiable. So, in your interest too, it's precious and welcome every your collaboration about this.

QUESTIONS ABOUT MINERALS

Do agate really become embittered in so many shades in the natural state? And how is it possible that it's as smooth as glass?
-It's true that agate exists in many shades, owing to the various impurities included into the mineral (SiO2); but it's also true than men love to retouch the beauties of nature giving agate more bright colours with artificial processes, after that cutting and dressing it into slices, paper-weights, etc.

Do really the stones used in the crystallotherapy have curative and spiritual powers?
-It's a difficult question to answer. Certainly a scientist should break into a hearty laugh hearing to take into consideration such possibility without foundation between the physics laws. Yet there are many, many people who believe in theology, in astrology, in cartomancy, in premonitions and other analogous phenomena. We don't want to tell you if "L'Arca di Noè" believes so; we say only that from age to age the crystallotherapy has been used like alternative medicine, and now during this New Age it's coming into fashion. For more detailed informations, see you our section "Articles and Columns".

Are the meteorites and volcanic ashes you sell authentic? How can I be sure of what I purchased?
- All our meteorites and volcanic ash are accompanied by a tag and various geological records describing the nature, composition and origin. We guarantee their authenticity, of course, and those who request it will receive a certificate signed by us certifying their originality.

QUESTIONS ABOUT INSECTS

Are indeed real the dried insects that you sell?
-Yes, insects, like as fossils, stuffed animals and everything you'll find in the catalogs, are just real, mounted and dried (apart of course those alive, but at the moment we don't treat them anymore).

What is the difference between the insects to mount and those already mounted?
-Both are dried, that is no more soft and flexible as when they're living, but stiff and fragile to push and to press, light and friable like dried leaves. We sell all the insects of the catalog papered or in coverings for practicalness (so packed they don't run the risk of breackages during the carriage) and for collectors' requirements that prefer to prepare the insects themselves. Therefore the specimen are folded on themselves, with legs and antennae curled up or, in the case of butterflies, with the wings closed one on the other. In this state, without softening them, they'd shatter if someone tries to spread to give them a natural posture. To do it, are necessary some preliminary techniques and a following preparation labour. In our website (Articles and Columns section, at this link) it's available a short guide about the main techniques to learn how to mount yourselves the dry insects. Once mounted and set in a natural posture (as they appear in almost all the photos of the catalogue) it's possible to preserve them in the same way of the museum into special display boxes (or entomological boxes), frames or various containers (see the section Equipment).

May the dead insects cause any diseases?
-Dried insects that we sell don't cause any diseases, not even those tropical. They have treated with acetone or freezing at departure or at arrival. Besides they are dried for a long time, and also to soften them, you'll not wake any drowsy virus or bacterium, don't worry! The hygiene rules obviously remain a must.

Any insects like Eupatorus gracilicornis are painted?
-No. The sheen of their bodies, that looks like plastic material, is quite natural, with the contribution of an organic molecule, typical of Arthropoda, called chitin.

Do you feel sorry for those poor little beasts?
-Surely we feel sorry for them, but those who point out it, should feel accordingly pity for the skinned lambs streaming blood from the butcher's hooks, to finish as many pretty beefsteaks on our tables, or the furs weared by many vain ladies, the plushes made with coats of dogs and cats living skinned, the animal at the risk of extinction in the sight of the hunters and the pyromaniacs, and the tons of sea organisms in the fishing-nets.Do you feel sorry for the mosquitos that you crush?
They sting to survive and to lay their eggs! And what about the bugs that you crush under foot only because you're disgusted by them? There are also the snails and the lobsters living boiled, the rhinoceros killed because an idiot said that their horns are aphrodisiac, the cavies vividissected in the laboratories for silly cosmetic aims... We could extend this list through thousands of lines, to discovery that we kill not only to feed.

But can Italian insects be sold?
-Since we have not been here for over 20 years to get some air and we are not criminals (and if we were, what do you ask us to do?) Like any species, there are protected specimens that are in CITES (Washington Convention) and cannot to be neither hunted, nor traded, and common and abundant specimens that there is no problem (apart from the ethical one) of capturing them and selling them both alive and dead collectibles (as in the case of the ones we treat). Most Italian insects are not protected, there are few non-huntable species, you can find them all on the Forestale website.

QUESTIONS ABOUT SHELLS

The orange, yellow, violet and red colours of Pecten nobilis (or Chlamys senatoria) are natural or is it painted?
-It isn't painted. It is a matter of polimorfism in the specimen, that is genetic variability between organisms inside of popolations of a same specimen, as well as exist persons high or low, black or white, fair or brown.

If I wanted to start a collection of shells, from which species do you advise me to start?
In reality, a collection does not start from a species, more often from a systematic category, such as the Cones or the Cypraee, usually the most coveted by the collectors, but not necessarily. There are murici (Muricidae), but bivalves can also be preferred to gastropods, or particular groups, such as scafopods or cephalopods. Furthermore you don't necessarily have to collect a taxonomic group in particular, a collection can start from a particularly beautiful specimen for you or that reminds you of something, suggests a particular sensation ... you can even integrate a "amateur" collection made up of specimens collected on the beach as a child ... identify those and then add more according to your tastes and preferences, or the available budget. In short, there is something for everyone!

If I would like to put your shells in my marine aquarium, can I do it or could I have problems?
Usually the shells are polished and cleaned with acids from internal residues of organic material that could remain adhered to the death and extraction of the animal. Therefore, as explained on the site under "How to place orders - Product warranty", we are not responsible for the improper use of our items, which we sell for collection purposes only: we mention the case of those who want to use shells or worse, starfish dried deaths for your aquariums, especially marine ones, which are even more delicate than freshwater ones. In fact, for these uses we recommend taking the shells directly from nature (we have no way of knowing how our suppliers around the globe have treated them before putting them on the market) or using facsimiles of plastic or other inert material.
Therefore, if you want to buy them, the use that will be made of them remains under the responsibility of the purchaser, it being understood that, knowing that they may have been treated with acids, you know how to wash them, clean them and make them harmless.

QUESTIONS ABOUT SHARKS

I would be interested in a shark tooth, but I would like to know if the products you sell are real items or reproductions in similar materials
- Yes, both the shark teeth, the insects, the fossils, the stuffed animals and whatever else you will find in the catalogs or in the rest of the site, are all true, also because if they were false we would have written you, but we are not neither of counterfeiters, nor scammers, nor do we sell toys or items for modeling, but only and solely scientific collector's items.

Why the teeth of the modern sharks are more expensive than the fossil shark's teeth? The fossils haven't more value?
-It's right leaving out the human factor: we have almost caused the extinction of the modern sharks massacring them pitilessly, though they really never threatens us. On the contrary, the ancient sharks neither had adversary nor natural plunderers, they were at the top of the food chain and prospered and multiplied undisturbed through millions of years. Today we find entire fossil deposits of teeth of these enormous sharks, and in consequence of this the price is cheap, (except for rarer and/or larger pieces).

If I buy a loose shark tooth, will you fit it to me in a pendant or necklace?
-No, sorry, we don't do craft work. The necklaces with shark teeth or pendants with the root of the teeth covered with silver we buy them already prepared as you see them on the site, so the necklaces are ready to wear, while the pendants need a lace or a chain, which we sell separately . Shark teeth sold loose individually or in batches, however, you can have them set or mounted in a necklace by your trusted goldsmith.

QUESTIONS ABOUT OTHER ANIMALS

Are the red and blue starfish really so made, or they are painted?
-Both. When they are living, the natural colour of each specimen in our catalogue is a fine bright red or a dark blue, but all the starfish, on their death, lose their pigments becoming of pale colour. According to the process of desiccation, they can or not retain their original colour. Those blue, indeed, are natural, while those red have been "recharged", as they say in jargon, that is they got again artificially their colours when alive.

May we buy any alive fish or starfish for aquarium?
-Certainly... but not sailing on "L'Arca di Noè"! In addition, the "Other Animals" category deals only with stuffed animals, dried or prepared as you wish, and the only live animals we had, all of them Invertebrates, you could find them under "Breeding", which however has been removed because we no longer treat animals. live for several years. There are as many aquarium sites as you want, so: good research!

I would like to buy a horseshoe crab, but it is alive or is a fossil?
- The answer is: none of the two things.
We sell naturalistic items for collectors, therefore, as we treat all other arthropods (insects, arachnids, crustaceans, etc..), they are dried animals (stuffed or, even if the term is a misnomer because there is no embalming performed on Invertebrates, but is a technique that is used only for Vertebrates).
The fossils instead (but we currently have no horseshoe crabs) are found in the Fossils Catalog, while the horseshoe crabs that we sell have been inserted in our Other Animals and Insects Catalogs.
The question is in any case irrelevant, because the horseshoe crab is still considered a "living fossil", a prehistoric animal come down to the present day, such as the famous coelacanth.
Finally, if you read the description of the items, you may find some very interesting information on horseshoe crabs.

QUESTIONS ABOUT FOSSILS

Are the fossils that you sell original or close copies?
-They are authentic fossils, that is "close copies" by molecular replacement that mother nature had produced for us many millions of years ago. If they're real close copies (because the original fossils, as for example the dinosaur's bones, have prohibitive costs and it is possible to find them only in museums), the information will be specified clear in the catalog, but at the moment - albeit with regret - we have not treated them for several years, just to avoid confusion or misunderstanding among inexperienced customers or to hear similar questions asked, when nothing suggests such a thing, as it is not mentioned anywhere that we sell replicas of real fossils.

Why any fossils half one thousand millions years old, like some your Trilobites or Ortoceratides, are so cheap?
-If we must consider the value of fossils that we deal only on the ground of their antiquity, than only the sheiks could afford to buy the Trilobites and the Nautiloides. In reality in the seas of the Paleozoic Era these animals had a such evolutive explosion and they lived so long before their extinction, that they left entire fossil deposits, though the fossilization is a very rare event. Therefore quantity is the parameter that determines the value and so the price.

By purchasing fossils, is any documentation issued that certifies what type of artifact was purchased, or that you confirm that you have not purchased a fake or an artificial replica? Do you provide a certification on the alleged dating of the fossil?
-As a matter of fact, if you think that buying from us, you will find yourself in the hands of a false pretended to be authentic, you will not have to wonder if you lead us without too many compliments to warmly invite you to buy elsewhere, "thanking you" for the trust and delicacy with which tell us about it. In any case we regret not being able to satisfy you, but we do not provide any type of certification, not for rudeness, but simply because we are only retailers and not a University or similar and we are not authorized to do so. Who, practicing our same activity, issues similar certificates, commits an offense and has no value. All we can offer is that, by purchasing from us, we are responsible for the quality of the goods sold, therefore guaranteeing validity for all the products purchased, for which you can always exercise a regular right of withdrawal. Insects, fossils, shells etc. they are also accompanied by a special tag from our company with the data of the exhibit in question, when these are available. To overcome any doubt, you can always have our articles examined at the University of your city or to whom you consider most appropriate. However, we can assure you to reassure you all that our articles are safe both in terms of their originality and legal regularities (CITES, complaints, etc.). If, however, you need a piece of paper that states that the fossil is authentic, we do not put anything to it and in fact we provide it on request, but we repeat it to you in full honesty: it would have no value. To have it, it must in fact be drawn up by a qualified professional who, obviously, as for the authentications of works of art, archaeological heritage, precious gems, etc. this document is paid handsomely, a sum of money that will probably be much greater than the value of the goods you have purchased, since we do not sell dinosaur skeletons. It therefore seems superfluous to point out that no such online professional service would provide it free of charge, as long as you find it easily, except to have a certification trimmed without any value as mentioned above, or precisely what you fear so much, in order to sell you something, ending, as they say: "happy and cheated".

QUESTIONS ABOUT TAXIDERMY

Do you sell also protected or in danger of extinction animals?
-Not at all! It's forbidden by the law ((it is a criminal offense for those who do not know and carelessly or gently ask us for tiger teeth or bear skins); besides we have a coscience that prevents us from doing. Therefore you'll find only animals that, until the hunting is allowed and according to the rules, they'll continue to finish on our dinner tables or in the tassidermic laboratories. However, as regards the appearing very few exceptions in the catalog, all the species illustred have been reported and in right with the laws in force.

Are you interested in buying my private collection of stuffed animals that I inherited from my grandfather?
-Thank you for the offer, but we are compelled to reject it, mainly because of lack of market. We get it constantly offers collections of individuals who would like to get rid of them, sometimes without even being regularly reported in the CITES list, but almost never required to purchase, and therefore do not treat them the most, going with what we are exhausted or there colleagues propose that we trust and knowledge of current legislation.

But can Italian fauna be sold?
- To find out which species are protected and / or not huntable or marketable, we invite you to go to the Forestry site and look for the species in Cites (Washington Convention). In fact, to sell them they must have been duly reported. Obviously there are very few specimens that we have that fall into this list and we prefer not to treat them as usual (except if they come from old collections purchased in the past and denounced regularly, or in the case of breeding species), as there are many species at risk of extinction, so we don't see the reason for having to go and compromise the endangered fauna. The same goes for the flora, which we do not treat.

QUESTIONS ABOUT GADGETS

Are real the animals and the flowers contained in your resine keyholders?
-Yes.

QUESTIONS ABOUT EQUIPMENT

Which advices can you give with regard to any insects to put into a display box?
-The procedures of preparation of the Arthropods assure their intact preservation in the course of the time (nowadays is still possible to admire in the museums entomological collections from the last century). The fundamental shrewdness, over all if you haven't an airtigh entomological box, is to insert in a nook a piece of camphor (to replace when it's consumed) or another substance to drive the moths away from your collection.
Do not expose your insect collections, especially butterflies, to direct sunlight: the heat of the greenhouse effect would make them crumple and fade over time.

QUESTIONS ABOUT BREEDING

Are dangerous the alive Invertebrates that you sell?
- We have not treated more animals for many years, so nothing we sell is dangerous, since we are all dead. Certainly some have been alive, like spiders and scorpions. In fact all the spiders, except the Uloboridae family, have a poisonous staple, some more or less. And so the scorpions with the sting of their tail. Although very few species are really dangerous for humans, the reaction to the poison is still subjective and therefore should always be treated with the utmost caution and we allow ourselves to advise against breeding by children, unless under the supervision of an adult . Do not forget, however, that in Italy it is now prohibited by law to hold any arachnid considered dangerous or incapacitating for humans! The situation is different with regard to the other animals that we once treated, for which there were no dangerous problems in any case. Of course, it is possible that some cricket (we are always talking about live animals that we do not treat) can bite a finger, that you can prick yourself with the thorns of the body of some fasmid, but these circumstances are completely harmless: to be scratched to the face by a cat or bites from a dog is definitely much more dangerous! However you can rest assured because, we repeat it one last time, we no longer sell live animals for several years: ours are all dead and dried for collector use.

Are all easy to breed?
-We repeat: we have not sold live animals for many years ... anyway, yes, we had made a selection of all those species, especially tropical ones, that best suited our climate or that do not present any problems, such as mating difficulties or egg hatching, high mortality at the larval or juvenile stage, otherwise difficult to find and so on. If you want to try your hand at it, then always keep these parameters of choice in mind. And do not forget that they are living beings with your own rights: there are no lower and higher animals. At the moment, as breeding material, we only have artificial terrarium reptiles for reptiles and fine grain chipboard, suitable for snakes or other animals. Find everything in the Equipment catalog.

But can Italian live insects be sold?
-Remembering that sending live animals is a crime, there is no problem to sell live insects if you have a pet shop, but beware of arachnids (spiders and scorpions) that is forbidden in Italy both to breed them and trade them or keep them, because they are all considered (wrongly by this ignorant law, although now it seems to have been integrated) dangerous and debilitating to humans as poisonous. Even the ticks are arachnids, but the dogs carry them on their back for a walk with no problems and no one is reported for this, although the bite of one of these animals can sometimes be even lethal.
At one time we treated both reptiles and live insects and we sold mostly fasmids (leaf insects or stick insects), but also tropical centipedes, exotic snails and cockroaches: easy to breed and of sure impact on the public for their mimetic abilities, as well as looking very exotic and bizarre. There are also Italian stick insects (Bacillus rossii).

QUESTIONS ABOUT CURIOSITY

Who is Tippy, a rubbit that you've mounted?
-By no means! Tippy is a member of the family in every respect, and though it does a lot of damages at home (it eats the wall-paper and it scatters "biological souvenir" in plenty - let's never buy a rubbit no dwarf if you haven't a garden!) we love him, as you can see in the photo: it eats as a little pig!