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<div class="moz-cite-prefix">Dear Jade,<br>
<br>
personally, I would refrain from injecting water-based, acidic
formaldehyde solution to a specimens sitting in diluted ethanol.
Especially if the specimen was weakly ethanol "fixed" in the
beginning, you can't really re-fixate it by exposing it to
formalin. The formaldehyde can, if at all, only preserve the
current condition, but not improve it. Second, you might add a lot
of osmotic issues, which could (further) damage the specimen (not
to mention pH issues).<br>
<br>
I would try to determine the current concentration of your holding
fluid and would move the specimen(s) through an rising alcohol
ladder (normally 20/40/60/75%). Depending on the condition of the
specimen, it might be good to inject carefully a little bit
ethanol inside the body cavity of specimens to support this
process (not into tissues).<br>
<br>
For any further questions centred around fluid collections, I
strongly recommend John E. Simmons (2014) brilliant and exhaustive
"Fluid Preservation - a comprehensive reference" (ISBN
9781442229655). Comprehensive is an understatement. It's <i>THE
REFERENCE</i> combining knowledge since the early days of fluid
preservation. If "revamping" means a taking conservative measures
on a larger collection, this book might be a very valuable
reference during this work. <br>
<br>
Regarding the paper: the potential pH shift is correlated with the
fluid amount inside containers; the same paper might give a strong
pH shift in a small specimen jar (< 50 ml total volume), while
in a 1000 l jar the shift might be negligible. In general, also in
"normal paper" you may have up to 30 different chemicals added
during production that are trapped inside the paper. A possible
alternative would be usage of certified archival paper. However,
before you shift to another label, you should test if your
printing method works with the new printing medium - not all
combinations of "paper" & "printer" produce durable labels.<br>
<br>
Hope this helps<br>
Dirk <br>
<i></i><br>
<br>
Am 10.09.2015 um 03:32 schrieb Jade Keehn:<br>
</div>
<blockquote
cite="mid:CAFMpTtyJ1PL=gs70NQsMULPfNMWrnB4A9FJP0Agz3gpwpg7i4Q@mail.gmail.com"
type="cite">
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<div>
<div><font size="2"><span style="font-family:times new
roman,serif">Greetings,<br>
<br>
</span></font></div>
<font size="2"><span style="font-family:times new roman,serif">This
year, our department is working to revamp a historic fish
and herp collection in various states of disrepair. We
have been diligently sifting through the curatorial
literature to prepare for this process; however, there are
a few things we could use some advice on. Hopefully, there
are a few knowledgeable wet collection curators who can
answer some questions before we begin our assessment and
treatment of this valuable collection.<br>
<br>
</span></font></div>
<div><font size="2"><span style="font-family:times new
roman,serif">Our first question regards refixing museum
specimens. A number of amphibs are in rather "soggy"
condition and we are considering injecting them with 10%
formalin before returning them to ethanol solution. This
'refixing' process was mentioned in a 1978 ASIH museum
practices document, but we haven't seen it discussed in
anything more recent. Are there any potential
disadvantages to refixing specimens to improve specimen
quality/ longevity?<br>
<br>
<span style="line-height:107%">The herpetological
collection is currently labeled using Resistall paper.
The literature indicates that this paper type may result
in an acidic/damaging pH. Is there another labeling
paper that is recommended for use? <br>
<br>
</span></span></font></div>
<div><span
style="font-size:11pt;line-height:107%;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif"><span
style="font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif"><font
size="2"><span style="font-family:times new roman,serif">A
number of specimens have been preserved using Ward's
solution. Are there any potential concerns or
treatment procedures needed before transferring these
specimens into ethanol (75%)? Secondly, is there any
reason to worry about the condition of cleared and
stained specimens, assuming they are still submerged
in fluid?<br>
<br>
</span></font></span></span></div>
<div><font size="2"><span style="font-family:times new
roman,serif"><span style="line-height:107%">Thanks in
advance for the advice!<br>
<br>
<br>
<br>
</span></span></font></div>
<div><font size="2"><span style="font-family:times new
roman,serif"><span style="line-height:107%">Jade Keehn and
James Simmons<br>
</span></span></font></div>
<div><font size="2"><span style="font-family:times new
roman,serif"><span style="line-height:107%">Assistant
Museum Curators<br>
</span></span></font></div>
<div><font size="2"><span style="font-family:times new
roman,serif"><span style="line-height:107%">Museum of
Natural History<br>
</span></span></font></div>
<div><span
style="font-size:11pt;line-height:107%;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif"><span
style="font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif"><font
size="2"><span style="font-family:times new roman,serif">University
of Nevada, Reno</span><br>
</font></span></span></div>
</div>
<br>
<fieldset class="mimeAttachmentHeader"></fieldset>
<br>
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<pre class="moz-signature" cols="72">--
Dirk Neumann
Tel: 089 / 8107-111
Fax: 089 / 8107-300
email: Dirk.Neumann(a)zsm.mwn.de
Postanschrift:
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---------
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Tel: +49-89-8107-111
Fax: +49-89-8107-300
email: Dirk.Neumann(a)zsm.mwn.de
postal address:
Bavarian Natural History Collections
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