702 DIRECTIONS 



and expense. So very few large examples are exhibited in 

 museums, the majority of the species being known from the 

 young stage only, that the collector will find himself amply 

 recompensed by attending to these desiderata. 



Scaly fishes are skinned thus : with a strong pair of scissors 

 an incision is made along the median line of the abdomen from 

 the foremost part of the throat, passing on one side of the base 

 of the ventral and anal fins, to the root of the caudal fin, the 

 cut being continued upwards to the back of the tail close to the 

 base of the caudal. The skin of one side of the fish is then 

 severed Avith the scalpel from the underlying muscles to the 

 median line of the back ; the bones which support the dorsal 

 and caudal are cut through, so that these fins remain attached 

 to the skin. The removal of the skin of the opposite side 

 is easy. More difficult is the preparation of the head and 

 scapulary region ; the two halves of the scapular arch which 

 have been severed from each other by the first incision are 

 pressed towards the right and left, and the spine is severed 

 behind the head, so that now only the head and shoulder bones 

 remain attached to the skin. These parts have to be cleaned 

 from the inside, all soft parts, the branchial and hyoid apparatus, 

 and all smaller bones, being cut away with the scissors or scraped 

 off with the scalpel. In many fishes, which are provided with 

 a characteristic dental apparatus in the pharynx (Labroids, Cypri- 

 noids), the pharyngeal bones ought to be preserved, and tied 

 with a thread to tlie specimen. The skin being now prepared 

 so far, its entire inner surface as Avell as the inner side of the 

 head are rubbed with arsenical soap ; cotton-wool, or some 

 other soft material is inserted into any cavities or hollows, and 

 finally a thin layer of the same material is placed between the 

 two flaps of the skin. The specimen is then dried under a 

 slight weight to keep it from shrinking. 



The scales of some fishes, as for instance of many kinds of 

 herrings, are so delicate and deciduous that the mere handling 

 causes them to rub off" easily. Such fishes may be covered with 

 thin paper (tissue-paper is the best), which is allowed to dry on 

 them before skinning. There is no need for removing the paper 

 before the specimen has reached its destination. 



