MACERATION IN WATER. 105 



245. Removing Soft Parts from Alcoholic Specimens. 



Animals that have been preserved in alcohol may have their bones 

 cleaned by simply cutting and scraping away the soft parts. It 

 will be necessary to take great care, however, or the delicate pro- 

 cesses, especially of the skull, will be broken in getting off the 

 tough connective tissue. After the bones are cleaned as well as 

 possible, simply allow them to dry, or finish the cleaning as directed 

 hereafter ( 249). 



246. Allowing Ants or Dermestes to remove the Soft 

 Parts of Fresh Specimens. The skin and most of the flesh should 

 be dissected away, and the partially cleaned bones left in a damp 

 room. Dermestes will find them, and the larvae of the beetles will 

 remove the soft parts. 



If the aid of ants is to be sought, the bones prepared as just 

 directed should be sprinkled with sugar or smeared with molasses 

 or honey. Then they should be placed in a box pierced with small 

 holes. The box should be put by an ant's nest, and some sugar 

 sprinkled around the holes leading into it. The ants will clean the 

 bones more satisfactorily than the Dermestes. It usually takes 

 about a week for them to clean a cat' s arm. 



247. Maceration in Water. Employ stone-ware, porcelain 

 or glass dishes, if possible, to avoid discoloration of the bones. The 

 bones are freed from skin and most of the soft parts, separated, 

 placed in separate dishes as directed above, and covered completely 

 with clean soft water. The dishes should then be placed in a room 

 where the temperature does not fall below 18-20 C. If the room is 

 still warmer, the maceration will proceed all the more rapidly. 

 The water should be changed on the third day, and again on the 

 tenth, to avoid discoloration. 



It requires from a fortnight to two months for complete macera- 

 tion. The bones of very large animals may require even a longer 

 time. 



If possible, maceration should be done in a separate building, 

 and during warm weather. If done during cold weather, the fire 

 should not be allowed to go out, or adipocere, a waxy substance, 

 may form, which is difficult to remove. If the maceration is done 

 in a room or closet, there should be a special ventilating flue (g 196). 

 During maceration the bones should be occasionally examined. 

 When the soft parts separate readily, the water covering them 

 should be carefully poured off, and a gentle stream of fresh water 



