1^ 



b 

 L.A9IX 



The i%meriejini O.sprey., 



VOL. 



PLYMOUTH. CO.VN , MAY. 1885. 



NO. I. 



TAXIDERMY FOR BEGINNERS. 



SKINNING. 



Immediately after a bird is killed, the 

 throat and nostrils should be stuffed with 

 tow, cotton, or fine rags, and a small quan- 

 tity wound round the bill, to prevent the 

 blood from staining the plumage ; but 

 should any get on the feathers, notwith- 

 standing this precaution, the sooner it is 

 removed the better, which should be ef- 

 fected by a sponge which has been wet 

 in water. Too much dispatch cannot be > 

 used in removing the skin, if the bird is I 

 shot in a warm climate ; but, in temper- 

 ate regions, the bird may be allowed to i 

 cool. 



In proceeding to skin the bird, it should 

 be laid on its back, and the feathers of the j 

 breast separated to the right and left, when ] 

 a broad interval will be discovered, reach- 

 ing from the top to the bottom of the 

 breast-bone. 



A sharp penknife, or scalpel, must be 

 inserted at the point of the bone, and cut 

 the outer skin from thence to the vent, 

 taking care not to penetr ite so deep as the 

 flesh, or upon the inner skin which covers 

 the intestines. The skin will then be 

 easily separated from the flesh ; in larger 

 specimens, by the fingers, or, in smaller 

 ones, by passing a small blunt instrument 

 betwixt the skin and body, such as the end 

 of the scalpel handle ; with this you may 

 reach the back. 



The thighs should now be pressed in- 

 wards, as in the common method of skin- 

 ning a rabbit, and the skin turned back, 

 so far as to enable you to separate the 

 legs from the bodv at the knee joint. The 



skin is then pulled downwards, as low as 

 the rump, which is cut close by the inser- 

 tion of the tail, but in such a manner as 

 not to injure the feathers. The skin is 

 now drawn upwards the length of the 

 wings, the bones of which must also be 

 cut at the shoulder-joints ; it is then pulled 

 up, till all the back part of the skull is laid 

 bare, when the vertebras of the neck are 

 separated from the head, and the whole 

 body is now separated from the skin. 

 You next proceed to remove the brain, 

 through the opening of the skull, for which 

 purpose it may be enlarged by cutting 

 away the bone with a hollow chisel, or 

 other iron instrument. 



[to be continued.] 



TO PRESERVE EGGS. 



To preserve the shells of eggs, first take 

 care to clear them of their contents : get a 

 small, fine-pointed common syringe, and 

 inject the specimen with water until it 

 comes out quite clean. When an egg has 

 been partly hatched or addled, the remov- 

 al of the contents generally includes that 

 of the internal membrane or pellicle ; this 

 makes the shell weaker. When the specr 

 imens are quite clean internally, and have 

 become dry (which will be in a day or 

 two) take the syringe and inject them with 

 a strong solution of isinglass (with a little 

 sugar-candy added to prevent its crack- 

 ing) : blow this out again whilst warm. 

 Then dry the egg thoroughly. This meth- 

 od varnishes the inside, and the first spec- 

 imen on which it has been tried was a 

 field sparrow's egg. which is to this day 

 as bright in color and marking as a fresh 

 specimen. 



