[NHCOLL-L:4247] Re: 1895 Egg collection: freeze or not?

[John E Simmons]

Freezing is a conservation treatment.  You should never freeze anything
unless you have a good reason, as freezing puts materials through stress and
strain.  Ideally, you should quarantine the collection, set out lots of
sticky traps, and monitor it closely for several weeks for signs of pest
activity.  If you can't do that, then seal the eggs, cushioning material,
and containers in polyethylene bags.  Monitor the bags for any signs of pest
activity.  Only freeze the eggs if you know you have pests.

Freezing is a great way to kill pests, and for most types of collections it
is safe.  However, it should not be used indiscriminately.  Only freeze when
you know you have pests.

--John

John E. Simmons
Museologica
128 E. Burnside Street
Bellefonte, Pennsylvania 16823-2010
simmons.johne at gmail.com
303-681-5708
www.museologica.com
and
Adjunct Curator of Collections
Earth and Mineral Science Museum & Art Gallery
Penn State University
19 Deike Building
University Park, Pennsylvania 16802-2709
jes67 at psu.edu


On Sun, Mar 15, 2009 at 11:12 PM, Hochgraf, Susan
<susan.hochgraf at uconn.edu>wrote:

> We have just acquired a small collection of bird eggs, fully documented,
> from the turn of the last century.  The eggs appear to be in excellent
> condition, and we have transferred them from the original wood cabinet to
> plastic boxes, with a cushion of polyester fiberfill.
> What's the accepted practice on integrating to our collection:  freeze? or
> don't freeze?
> Many thanks for your words of wisdom.
> Sue
>
> Susan Hochgraf
> University of Connecticut
> Vertebrate Collections Manager
> Biological Research Collections
> Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
> 75 North Eagleville Road
> Storrs, Connecticut  06269-3043
> office: 860-486-8945
> fax: 860-486-6364
>
>
>


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