[NHCOLL-L:5985] Re: How to, and would you, repair a bird specimen?

[Couteaufin at aol.com]

Dear Kirsten
 
I have a long history of repairing birds but in a more ethically-correct  
manner and have not (yet) resorted to hot glue!  For re-attaching a tail I  
use neutral pH PVA and wrap some glue-moistened Gampi tissue around the  
insertion part of the tail and spread some glue around the cavity on the body  
using a spatula, ensuring that some soaks into the wood wool or hempen 
filling  but without getting any glue on the surrounding feathers.  Then the  tail 
is inserted and pinned into place.  Leave it overnight, remove  pins, 
realign the tail support armature wire under the tail and there you  are.
 
If you need to be really ethically correct then use pearl (fish) glue  
dissolved in warm water and isopropanol mix.  Rather smelly though!
 
With all good  wishes, Simon

Simon Moore MIScT, FLS, ACR,
Conservator of Natural  Sciences and Cutlery Historian,

_www.natural-history-conservation.com_ 
(http://www.natural-history-conservation.com/)  
_www.pocket-fruit-knives.info_ (http://www.pocket-fruit-knives.info/)  

_http://uk.linkedin.com/in/naturalsciencespecimenconserve_ 
(http://uk.linkedin.com/in/naturalsciencespecimenconserve)   


In a message dated 17/04/2012 17:51:22 GMT Daylight Time, norops at gmail.com  
writes:

Our  museum has a long history of "repairing" specimens that get damaged 
(in the  myriad ways that damage happens).  Because more of our specimens are 
used  for teaching and exhibiting than for research, perhaps this makes 
sense.  However (and not having been formally trained in this), the methods used 
 concern me and I'm asking you all the question of whether specimens should 
be  repaired, and if so how?  Specifically, in this case, I'm asking  about 
a bird specimen who's tail has fallen off (and it happens that  this is one 
of two specimens that we have of this MI endemic and endangered  species in 
our collection).  It had been on display for years, but that  display has 
now been removed and apparently the tail was damaged in the  process.    


I'm curious as to what you guys all do, recognizing that if often all  
depends on the details and circumstances.


What bothers me the most is the the historical "treatment" for most  
repairs was hot glue.  I guess if the specimen was in a teaching  collecting and 
dedicated only for that, and had little if any provenance, then  maybe it 
doesn't matter so much.  But what would you do in this case?  My gut feeling is 
to say leave it alone, it goes back into the research  collection and keep 
the tail with the body.


Thanks for any help you can offer,


Kirsten


-- 
Kirsten E. Nicholson,  Ph.D

Assoc. Prof. Biology          and       Curator of Natural History
Dept. of Biology   Museum of Cultural and Natural History
217 Brooks Hall   103 Rowe Hall
Central Michigan Univ.      Central Michigan  University 
Mt. Pleasant, MI 48859            Mt. Pleasant, MI 48859
989-774-3758       989-774-3829












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