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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D">There are several alternative ways of preparing osteo material depending on the size and fragility of the material being prepared. Yes, meal worms work. So
do isopods, crayfish, crabs, composting, maceration, etc. and combinations of them to produce skeletons. Dermestids can be quick. When my colony was going strong it could clean 20-30 mouse-sized vertebrates each day, or 1-2 larger vertebrates. Dermestids that
typically infest collections are often not the same as those used in osteo prep. They can cause problems too, but is usually the smaller species that are the main culprit in collection damage.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D">Thomas Labedz, Collections Manager<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D">Division of Zoology and Division of Botany<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D">University of Nebraska State Museum<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D">Lincoln, Nebraska, U.S.A.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D"><a href="mailto:tlabedz1@unl.edu">tlabedz1@unl.edu</a>
<o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Tahoma","sans-serif"">From:</span></b><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Tahoma","sans-serif""> nhcoll-l-bounces@mailman.yale.edu [mailto:nhcoll-l-bounces@mailman.yale.edu]
<b>On Behalf Of </b>Jessica Smith<br>
<b>Sent:</b> Wednesday, November 15, 2017 6:12 PM<br>
<b>To:</b> Casey Tucker<br>
<b>Cc:</b> nhcoll-l@mailman.yale.edu<br>
<b>Subject:</b> Re: [Nhcoll-l] Museum Project<o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal">Yes, this is of interest. We have found mealworms to be very effective for cleaning osteological materials as an alternative to dermestid beetles. They seem to be fairly hardy and the bones come out very clean without ancillary damage.
However I cannot say how this compares to dermestid beetles in terms of length of time to clean the specimens, space required, and overall effectiveness as we have never had a beetle colony.<o:p></o:p></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal">Emily Smith, Collections Coordinator<o:p></o:p></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal">Randolph College Natural History and Archaeology Collections Project<o:p></o:p></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="mailto:esmith@randolphcollege.edu">esmith@randolphcollege.edu</a><o:p></o:p></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal">On Nov 15, 2017 6:26 PM, "Casey Tucker" <<a href="mailto:tuckercasey@hotmail.com">tuckercasey@hotmail.com</a>> wrote:<o:p></o:p></p>
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<p><span style="font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:black">Hi Folks,<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:black"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:black">I'm passing this along for those that might be interested. As a disclaimer I have no part in this project or am I in anyway affiliated with it or its members.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:black"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:black">It's a project conducted by Junior High and High School students in Mexico that might have implications for natural history museum prep staff and collection managers.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:black"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:black">Maceration of Skull Tissue by Mealworms<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:black"><a href="https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__experiment.com_projects_maceration-2Dof-2Dskull-2Dtissue-2Dby-2Dmealworms&d=DwMFAw&c=cjytLXgP8ixuoHflwc-poQ&r=LpYc_Z_iN1KRw0hheb3x6-8MJUMu482qfHowpGYJqwc&m=abH7mQMxjVSGDdKJkppSfflbLjd9bymvENmMqFc7zFg&s=bFw8XI57Fbyj1qdiffLz15DPeu3WMc4IBXxY5mQ5PMQ&e=" target="_blank" id="m_-4103560422802317658LPlnk68909">https://experiment.com/projects/maceration-of-skull-tissue-by-mealworms</a><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:black"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:black">About This Project<o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:black">Could Mealworms be used as an alternative to dermestid beetles for skeleton preparation? In museums, dermestid beetles can cause infestation problems and destruction of valuable
collections if let loose. Through this experiment, we would like to find a way to reduce the chances of museum infestations and give amateur osteologists and hunters an easier way of processing animal materials to get clean skeletons.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
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NHCOLL-L is brought to you by the Society for the Preservation of<br>
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