IE # OOLOGIST,«< 



Vol. VI, 



ALBION, N. Y., MARCH, 1889. 



No. 3 



Brief Directions for Making a Bird 

 or Mammal Skin, 



UY ERNEHT K. THOMPSON, TOKOXTO. 



MATEraAL'i. 1, a sharp knife; 2, a pair 

 of stout scissors; 3, needles and thread; 

 4. a pair of forceps; 5, a supply of fine 

 hard wood sawdust or else corn-uieal; 6, 

 arsenical soap or else pnie dry arsenic; 

 7, cotton-wool for small specimens, and 

 tow, oaknm or fine dry grass for large 

 ones (never use hair, feathers or animal 

 substance); 8, benzine; 0, plaster-of-paris ; 

 10, powdered alum; 11, labels; 12, three or 

 four sizes of wire. 



Cleaning. The benzine is used with 

 p' aster of paris mixed to a creamy con- 

 sistency, to remove grease from the feathers 

 or fur; it should be well rubbed into the 

 affected place and then allowed to dry, after 

 which the plaster may be shaken off. 



Blood, may be removed with a sponge 

 and tepid water, drying the feathers or fur 

 at first with blotting paper and then with 

 sawdust, shaking and workings them till 

 dry. 



Measurements. Manj; of the best col- 

 lector's make no measiirement from the 

 fresh bird. Others tak« the length, that 

 is the distance between the tip of the beak 

 and the end of the longest tail feather, the 

 body being moderately stretched ; also the 

 extent which is the distance from tip to tip 

 of the outstretched T\ings. The length 

 is always a desirable item. 



A Mammal should always be measnred 

 when fresh, giving first the length which 

 is the distance from the tip of the tail bone 

 to the tip of the nose, moderately stretched; 

 and length of tail, for which the tail is 

 raised at right angles to the back, one end 

 of the rule or dividers being firmly placed 

 on the animal's back at the root of tail, the 

 other at the tip. The exact weight of a 

 mammal is also of value. 



Hkinnino a Bird. A bird of medium 



size, as a Robin, is best to begin on, and 

 supposing the specimen to have been 

 cleaned of blood and gi-ease, as above 

 directed and to have been measured, begin 

 by plugging the throat with cotton wool, 

 then slit the skin along the brerst bone to 

 the vent, taking care to cut no more than 

 the skin ; separate the skin from the body 

 toward the leg, always sprinkling the flesh 

 with sawdust as fast as it is exposed; when 

 each leg is exposed, cut it off near the 

 body, leaving it still attached to the skin; 

 in like manner having pushed the skin from 

 the body about the tail, cut through 

 the tail bones so that the par-, in which 

 the tail feathers grow shall be separated 

 from the body and attached to the skin; 

 skin up the back till the wings are reached, 

 cut these off next the body and push the 

 skin up over the neck, turning it inside 

 out as it is taken off; shortly after the 

 head is reached the ears will be found to 

 pin the skin to the skull, a little practice 

 will show how easily these maybe drawn out 

 with the dry tip of the thumb; presently 

 the eyes are reached and these must be 

 carefully cut clear of the eyelids and the 

 skinning carried on to the base . of the 

 bill (iu ducks, dirers, woodpeckers and 

 some others the head is too large to come 

 through the skin of the neck, so that it is 

 best to cut the neck off as soon as the base 

 of the skull is reached, then after pulling 

 the head out straight, cut a slit down the 

 nape and skin the head through it, carefully 

 stitching it up afterwards) ; now with four 

 decided cuts of the scissors remove the 

 lower half of the brain pan and the back 

 half of the palate ; this frees the body and 

 also renders easy the removal of the brains. 

 Care must be taken not to destroy the jaw- 

 bones or their hinges; remove the eyes, 

 the tongue and the flesh of the head; next 

 press back the skin on each wing so as to 

 expose two joints ; remove the flesh and fat ; 

 treat the legs in the same way, skinning 

 them to the commencement of the scaly 



