<div dir="ltr"><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family:tahoma,sans-serif;font-size:small;color:rgb(0,0,0)">Jade and James,<br></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family:tahoma,sans-serif;font-size:small;color:rgb(0,0,0)">You have received some excellent advice from Dirk, Simon, and Andy, but I thought I would add my two cents.<br><br></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family:tahoma,sans-serif;font-size:small;color:rgb(0,0,0)">I agree that re-fixation will be of little use. Formaldehyde fixes fresh tissues extremely well, but for long-preserved specimens it would really only work as a preservative, not a fixative. Particularly due to the safety issues in working with formaldehyde, I would follow the advice to stage the specimens down the concentration ladder to a bath of deionized or distilled water to wash them (to remove as much of the old preservatives as you can), then stage them back up to fresh 70% ethyl alcohol. You should check the alcohol concentration after a week or two to make sure that it is still 70% (the strength at which alcohol is a good biocide). Sometimes even when using a concentration ladder there can be enough water left in the specimens to dilute the preservative. Do use the concentration ladder--it is far better for the specimens.<br><br></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family:tahoma,sans-serif;font-size:small;color:rgb(0,0,0)">Fluid preservation in alcohol is a balance between dehydration and preservation. The stronger the alcohol, the more the specimens will shrink (dehydrate). Despite the number of recommendations you will see in the literature for 75% alcohol for fish and herps, it has never been shown to be more effective than 70% so I would use 70% to get less shrinkage of the specimens. But make sure it is a good 70%--check the concentration with a good, clean, dry hydrometer or better yet, a digital density meter (if you can afford one).<br><br></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family:tahoma,sans-serif;font-size:small;color:rgb(0,0,0)">The one exception to the above is fish and amphibian eggs and larvae. Because their tissues contain so much water, preserving them in alcohol will make the specimens unusable. Fish and amphibian eggs and larvae should be preserved and stored in buffered 10% formalin (1 part formaldehyde with 9 parts distilled or deionized water, neutral buffered).<br><br></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family:tahoma,sans-serif;font-size:small;color:rgb(0,0,0)">The proper name for "Wards solution" is Wards-safe, and it is mentioned in "Fluid Preservation: A Comprehensive Reference." On page 69 there is a discussion of glycol- and phenol-based preservatives including Wards-safe, and it is listed in Table 17, on page 332. The MSDS that Andy sent you is the correct one for this product. Based on an analysis done by an independent lab, the unknown proprietary ingredient in Wards-safe is most likely gluteraldehyde. The other ingredients, as Andy mentioned, are methyl alcohol (which is a lousy preservative due to the small size of its molecule--it is probably added as a denaturant) and propylene glycol, which works for a while as a holding fluid, but it is not a preservative, either. It is worth noting that Wards-safe and similar products were developed and sold as safer alternatives to formaldehyde and alcohol for specimens to be dissected. They were never intended to be used as lon-term preservatives, and do not work as long-term preservatives. Make sure you stage Wards-safe specimens to water and then up to alcohol. If you don't get the propylene glycol rinsed out of the specimen, it is likely to cause the preservative to turn cloudy later. I have worked with a collection once stored in Wards-safe and had a terrible time getting all the glycol out of the specimens--for larger specimens, it took many, many changes of fresh preservative.<br><br></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family:tahoma,sans-serif;font-size:small;color:rgb(0,0,0)">As for the cleared and stained specimens--do you know what they are stored in now? Most people keep them in 100% glycerin, although sometimes a dilute alcohol is used.<br><br></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family:tahoma,sans-serif;font-size:small;color:rgb(0,0,0)">If you wish to replace the Resistall labels you should try a spun-bonded polyethylene paper (we can't get the goatskin parchment in the US, unfortunately). Andy's recommendation of a thermal printer is excellent. If you can't afford that, however, you can purchase "Rite in the Rain" brand paper (which is really spun-bonded polyethylene) or a similar product. You can use it in some printers (but be careful, it can melt) or write on it with a permanent ink that you let dry for 24 hr before submerging, but do follow the advice of others and test your ink-and-label substrate combination before using it with specimens. You can find the Rite in the Rain products here: <a href="https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=http-3A__www.riteintherain.com_shop-2Dproducts&d=AwMFaQ&c=-dg2m7zWuuDZ0MUcV7Sdqw&r=CLFZJ3fvGSmDp7xK1dNZfh6uGV_h-8NVlo3fXNoRNzI&m=ZkAGzH1lN-gJ3H_VYP67I4xNHMzipmxs_lH1ae7ANuw&s=h04fBF0lxFQmJrpsil18hOBaF-GRF40YQniYx9SjHbE&e=">http://www.riteintherain.com/shop-products</a><br><br></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family:tahoma,sans-serif;font-size:small;color:rgb(0,0,0)">Another book that you may find useful is the new (third) edition of "Herpetological Collecting and Collections Management," which was just issued in July 2015 (this is an update of the 2002 edition). Although it is very herpetology-centric, almost all of the preserving and collection management advice applies equally well to fish. It is available from the Society for the Study of Amphibians and Reptiles (SSAR): <a href="https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=http-3A__www.ssarbooks.com_si_007.html&d=AwMFaQ&c=-dg2m7zWuuDZ0MUcV7Sdqw&r=CLFZJ3fvGSmDp7xK1dNZfh6uGV_h-8NVlo3fXNoRNzI&m=ZkAGzH1lN-gJ3H_VYP67I4xNHMzipmxs_lH1ae7ANuw&s=8kBehNpDvuTwNHR-J2hbvSLVu03Kl2XL-wotCHTFN48&e=">http://www.ssarbooks.com/si/007.html</a><br><br></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family:tahoma,sans-serif;font-size:small;color:rgb(0,0,0)">Please feel free to contact me, Simon, Dirk, or Andy or post your queries to the listserv if you have any more questions. We are always happy to be of assistance.<br><br></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family:tahoma,sans-serif;font-size:small;color:rgb(0,0,0)">--John<br><br></div></div><div class="gmail_extra"><br clear="all"><div><div class="gmail_signature"><div dir="ltr">John E. Simmons<br>Museologica<br>128 E. Burnside Street<br>Bellefonte, Pennsylvania 16823-2010<br><a href="mailto:simmons.johne@gmail.com" target="_blank">simmons.johne@gmail.com</a><br>303-681-5708<br><a href="https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=http-3A__www.museologica.com&d=AwMFaQ&c=-dg2m7zWuuDZ0MUcV7Sdqw&r=CLFZJ3fvGSmDp7xK1dNZfh6uGV_h-8NVlo3fXNoRNzI&m=ZkAGzH1lN-gJ3H_VYP67I4xNHMzipmxs_lH1ae7ANuw&s=j1-O9qcVy9WNPgDBQEsOejsEKCqcPbxP7dD7a5XU9FE&e=" target="_blank">www.museologica.com</a><br>and<br>Adjunct Curator of Collections<br>Earth and Mineral Science Museum & Art Gallery<br>Penn State University<br>University Park, Pennsylvania<br>and<br>Instructor, Museum Studies<br>School of Library and Information Science<br>Kent State University<br>and<br>Lecturer in Art<br>Juniata College<br>Huntingdon, Pennsylvania<br></div></div></div>
<br><div class="gmail_quote">On Wed, Sep 9, 2015 at 9:32 PM, Jade Keehn <span dir="ltr"><<a href="mailto:keehnj@nevada.unr.edu" target="_blank">keehnj@nevada.unr.edu</a>></span> wrote:<br><blockquote class="gmail_quote" style="margin:0 0 0 .8ex;border-left:1px #ccc solid;padding-left:1ex"><div dir="ltr"><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>
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