INSTRUCTIONS FOR THE PRESERVATION OF BIRDS. 25 



made high enough (but not too high), or the skin will tear across 

 the sides of the neck while it is being removed, and the damage is 

 irreparable. Some taxidermists make the incision from the vent 

 up to the middle of the breast-bone, and begin operations above 

 the tail-bone. Again, another excellent way is to make an incision 

 from the vent on either side to the upper edge of the thigh. By 

 this means a triangular flap is made of the abdominal skin, which 

 falls back into place after the body has been taken out, and the 

 feathers of the breast are not disturbed at all. If the incision be 

 made under the left w^ing, the joints should be cut through in the 

 following order: — left shoulder, neck, right shoulder, left thigh, 

 right thigh, tail ; or left thigh, tail, right thigh. 



After making a median incision, the skin must be pushed back 

 till the left shoulder is exposed : this must be divided at the 

 shoulder -joint, the humeral bone being always left with the wing 

 (see fig. 2). Then the skin must be carefully pushed back by the 

 fingers and thumb-nails till the neck is exposed. This must be cut 

 through with the nail-scissors, care being taken not to make a hole 

 with their sharp points in the skin below the neck ; the right wing 

 must then be attacked, and also severed at the shoulder. All 

 this time, with each motion of the fingers, the feathers of the 

 breast will be doing their best to soil themselves against the moist 

 surface of the body. It is, therefore, necessary to have some saw- 

 dust or sand handy to sprinkle over the raw fiesh as it becomes 

 exposed ; and if this be not available, a wisp of wool laid along 

 the base of the feathers will keep them back in a most unexpected 

 way : but, as said before, after a few attempts at skinning a bird, 

 the fingers will be found to interpose by instinct, and prevent the 

 feathers from becoming soiled by contact with the flesh. 



The two wing-joints and the neck being severed from the trunk, 

 the skin can easily be pushed off the back of the bird till by degrees 

 the thigh-bones are approached. In many birds — such as Thrushes, 

 for instance — the skin is very firmly attached to the lower back, and 

 any attempt to hurry will end in splitting the skin right across. 

 Although an accident of this sort may not ultimately destroy the 

 appearance of the skin, it is difficult to restore the natural set of the 

 feathers of the upper surface. As the skin is pushed off the lower back 



