Some young furred animals and others with very delicate skins do not work up well from the bath and had best be mounted without it, being handled more as bird skins are.
In skinning the larger quadrupeds we make two additional cuts, from the right to the central line and out to the left fore foot and a similar cut connecting the hind feet. These opening cuts are on the back and inside of the legs, you will understand.
With most large subjects another cut from the shoulders up the back of the neck is necessary. On animals having horns or antlers this is terminated in a Y or T shape, reaching the base of the antlers. After loosening the skin around the antlers the head is removed through this incision. As it is hardly possible to make an outline sketch of a large animal, as full a set of measurements as possible is useful in all cases.
[Ill.u.s.tration: SKINNING LARGE ANIMAL FOR MOUNTING. CUT ON DOTTED LINES.]
The bones of the legs will be in the way attached to the skin and the two upper bones of each leg may be detached and if lack of s.p.a.ce or transportation make it necessary, thrown away, though if the bones of one hind leg and one front leg are preserved artificial duplicates may be carved.
[Ill.u.s.tration: SKINNING BIRD-BREAST CUT.]
In skinning birds, after fresh cotton plugs have been put in place the feathers are parted and the opening incision made through the skin only from the middle of the breast to the root of the tail. Separate the skin and flesh on each side until the knee is reached, push this up until the knife or scissors can be pa.s.sed under it and the leg severed at the joint. A little corn meal sprinkled on the exposed flesh and the operator"s fingers will prevent the feathers adhering and becoming soiled as the work proceeds.
Cut off the flesh in which the tail quills are rooted leaving it on the skin with one or two of the last vertebrae. Use care in this or you will cut the skin above the tail too. The body may now be hung up by a cord tied to the stump of one of the legs and both hands used in separating and turning the skin back until the wings are reached. The skin is loosened around these and they may be severed at the elbow joint unless the bird is to be mounted with wings spread, when it will be best to unjoint at the shoulder and preserve the entire wing bones.
[Ill.u.s.tration: HOODED MERGANSER.]
With the wings detached we skin on to the base of the skull. In some of the ducks, and other water birds, woodp.e.c.k.e.rs and owls the neck is so slender and the skull so large that it is necessary to cut the neck off here and making a cut down the back of the head and neck continue the skinning of the head through it. Do not cut or tear the membrane of the ears but pull it out with the forceps and work down over the eyes, cutting the membrane connecting the skin but not the lids or eyeball itself. The liquid contents of the eye are particularly sticky and difficult to remove from feathers.
Continue skinning to the base of the bill, scoop the eyes from their sockets and cut loose the forward part of the skull from the neck. This is usually accomplished with four snips of the scissors much easier to practice than to describe.
Make one cut on each side of the head, through the small bone connecting the base of the lower jaw with the skull, another through the roof of the mouth at the base of the upper mandible and between the jaws of the lower, and the last through the skull behind the eyes and parallel with the roof of the mouth. This will free the skull of the neck and most of its flesh and muscle.
In most cases the head should be returned to the skin as soon as possible to avoid its drying out of shape and giving the feathers a wrong set. After cleaning and poisoning the skull and filling the eye sockets with cotton this reversing is undertaken. If working on a small bird the learner is apt to come to grief here, as only by careful and patient work without the application of some force is the returning process accomplished successfully.
The wings and legs may now be skinned down to the first joint and all flesh and muscle removed from the bones. This is done expeditiously by snipping off the end of the leg bone and stripping it down with adhering flesh to the ankle joint where it (the flesh) is cut off.
The wings are skinned to the first joint, stripping the wing primary feathers from their fastening on the bone with the thumb nail, clipping off the large bone near the end and detaching the small bone with all flesh and muscle adhering. If this is clipped off at the wrist joint the entire wing is cleaned. This method applies to all small and medium birds not wanted with spread wings.
[Ill.u.s.tration: OPENING CUT ON BIRD.
Opening and Cleaning Wing from Underneath For Spread Wing Mounting.]
In case wing spread is wanted the primary feathers are not disturbed but that part of the wing is cleaned from a slit in the under side of the wing. All but the smallest birds should have the tip joint of the wing slit open on the under side and some form of preservative worked in the opening. Specimens the size of a crow and larger should have a cut made in the bottom of the foot and the tendons of the lower leg drawn out with an awl, and in the case of very large birds it may be necessary to soak the unfeathered part of the legs and feet in a pan of strong pickle for 24 hours, to prevent decay and damage from insects. Our bird is now entirely ready for the application of such preservatives as we may be using.
The main principle in the preserving of skins may be stated thus: All skins must be removed and cleaned of flesh so the preservative may be applied to every part of the inner surface, where it will act directly on the roots of the hair or feathers.
The preservative applied, we must decide on the next step, whether it is to be mounted at once, in a short time, or laid away indefinitely as a scientific skin.
If we have to lay it away until tomorrow, put a little cotton inside to prevent the inner surface sticking together, wrap in a damp cloth and unless the weather is very hot it will be all right.
If very hot or it is necessary to lay it aside for some days, the inner side should be well coated with the carbolic and glycerine mixture. As a scientific skin it should be made up at once, tagged with a full set of measurements taken before skinning and laid aside to dry. These measurements are not needed if we mount it at once, as the skinned body is at hand for comparison, but the s.e.x, date, locality and collector"s name should be attached to the completed specimen.
Alligators and the lizard family are skinned like the other four-footed species, as are snakes and fish, with the exception they have no limb bones to be cleaned and preserved. Fish are better opened along one side than the central line of the body.
Reptile skins if not put in the pickle jar had better be packed in salt after poisoning as when entirely dry they are practically ruined. Skins of fish are best kept in either a saturated solution of salt (water with salt added until no more will dissolve), alcohol or formaldehyde solution. Whatever method is used the delicate colors will vanish and unless you can have a fresh specimen at hand when mounting it you should make the best color record you are able. This is true to some extent at least of all coverings of fur, feathers, or scales, and the stronger the light the more damage. I have seen a mounted mink placed in direct sunshine, bleached to a drab and the yellow feathers on a "flicker faded almost white.
In order to preserve turtles, after killing with chloroform preferably, it is necessary in the case of the box or land turtles to cut a square opening in the under sh.e.l.l through which the body may be removed and the legs and neck skinned.
The water species can have the lower sh.e.l.l detached from the upper at the side and after cutting the skin around the rear two-thirds this sh.e.l.l is turned over to the front and the skinning and cleaning proceeded with.
If not mounted at once make into a dry skin after poisoning or small turtles may be put in alcohol.
CHAPTER VII.
MAKING SCIENTIFIC SKINS.
Probably most bird skins which are not mounted at once are kept in the form of "scientific skins." In other words they are skinned, poisoned and without wiring, given the shape of the dead bird. Their plumage, size, etc., may be examined, they are easily packed or shipped and, if properly made, may be mounted at any time but at the expenditure of considerably more work than a freshly taken skin requires.
The instructions on skinning leaves us with the skin wrong side out with the exception of possibly the head. The leg and wing bone, cleaned of flesh, should be well poisoned as well as the skin and after wrapping with pieces of cotton bat to their approximate size, returned to their places. It is well when doing this to under rather than over fill.
Connect the bones of the wings with a bit of thread or cord. After filling out around the eyes and upper throat, wind a small stick or piece of wire with cotton to a size a little smaller than the natural neck and push it into the opening at the back of skull.
The body can be filled out now with raw cotton, tow, or any similar substance not of animal origin. Fine excelsior is about right for large birds. The edges of the opening cut may be drawn together by a few coa.r.s.e st.i.tches. After the feet have been tied together it is time to adjust all the feathers become well rumpled in handling.
Our fingers, forceps and a setting needle made of a large needle or part of a hat pin in a wooden handle will accomplish this. Stained or dirty plumage should be cleaned before the skin is filled out, by first sponging with tepid water, then with gasoline or benzine and drying with plaster of paris or corn meal. Never apply this without the gasoline first or you will have trouble indeed.
Now the skin is ready for its label, which should supply the following information:
1. Length in inches from tip of tail to end of tail.
2. Distance between the tips of outstretched wings.
3. Length of wing from the first joint.
4. Color of eyes, feet, bill, etc.
5. Date, locality, collector.
6. The s.e.x.
The first three items are often combined, in the case of a bluebird for instance, 7-12-4, the order being understood.
Unless the plumage plainly indicates the s.e.x this should be a.s.sured by examination of the skinned body. By making an opening in the side of this near the back bone the inside surface of the small of the back is exposed. In the case of the male there will be visible two rounded bodies, varying in size with the season and species, and in the female a flattened ma.s.s of spheres.
After labeling and fastening the bill together with a pin or thread the skin should be slipped inside a paper tube to dry. Water birds with long slender necks should have the head bent around beside the body and the long legs of waders are bent at the ankle and left resting on the body; this to prevent breakage.
Duck, geese and any fat birds need the inside of the skins well sc.r.a.ped, sponged with gasoline, partly filled with plaster paris and left for several hours so all grease may be absorbed. This grease should be removed prior to applying the preservative as it will prevent any effectual penetration by the latter.
After cleaning either the inside or out of a skin with plaster it will be necessary to gently beat it with a whisk broom or something similar to dislodge the particles of plaster. A current of air (from a bicycle pump, for instance) will remove the dust from the feathers when dry.
[Ill.u.s.tration: SCIENTIFIC SKINS, SMALL ANIMALS AND BIRDS.]
Fewest dry scientific skins are made up from the quadrupeds, but in case the matter of transportation prevents wet preservation or they are wanted dry the all around taxidermist must practice at making them up also. Like the bird skin they should be thoroughly rid of flesh and fat after skinning but do not require such finical handling. Rinsing in water with a little washing powder or soda added will remove blood stains and some grease but the benzine bath with the drying after, as recommended in the chapter on tanning, etc., will be needed in case of very fat specimens.