<div dir="auto"><div>In addition to tying them shut with thread, I usually use a pin to secure the bill and prevent the lower mandible from sliding backward. See attached photos. Unlike an adhesive, it's not guaranteed to always keep the bill tightly closed once the thread and pin are removed, but it generally does the job.</div><div dir="auto"><br></div><div dir="auto">-Symcha Gillette</div><div dir="auto">Research Affiliate, University of Alaska Museum<br><br><div class="gmail_quote" dir="auto"><div dir="ltr" class="gmail_attr">On Thu, Nov 20, 2025, 5:57 AM Black, Nina <<a href="mailto:npblack@fas.harvard.edu" rel="noreferrer noreferrer" target="_blank">npblack@fas.harvard.edu</a>> wrote:<br></div><blockquote class="gmail_quote" style="margin:0 0 0 .8ex;border-left:1px #ccc solid;padding-left:1ex">




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Hi All,</div>
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Does anyone have advice for an archival glue that can be used to keep bills closed when preparing bird skins, or perhaps can suggest a good method for this? We always tie them shut with string through the nostrils, but for some birds that have long bills or
 oddly shaped ones it is hard to keep it closed. Some colleagues have used regular super glue, but I am not so keen on this idea</div>
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Thanks,</div>
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Nina</div>
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<b>Nina Black</b></div>
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Curatorial Assistant</div>
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Ornithology & Mammalogy</div>
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