[Nhcoll-l] Mold on specimens (skeletal, taxidermy) and cardboard boxes

Tue Sep 20 14:24:33 EDT 2022

Dear Chris,

I am so sorry you're going through this, it is a very challenging problem
to have. Mold is terrible.

First of all, I would agree with John about the use of PPE, nothing is more
important than people's health.
Second, I also agree with his recommendation to discard the cardboard
boxes. Just make sure that when you do that, you're not throwing away any
important written information or labels that may be present in/on them.
Third, John's recommendation about bone is excellent as well. Make sure you
test the ethanol on the bone surface before you begin, to make sure it does
not penetrate too deeply into the bone. The goal is for it to evaporate
quickly, so avoid dunking bone in the ethanol and use other tools such as
cotton swabs

Fourth, bleach on taxidermy is not a good idea. It is a damaging chemical
that will also bleach the specimens. Taxidermy is more complex to treat
because you will have hair, feathers, skin, keratin, and painted
surfaces and plant material on top of that. Ethanol can work in some cases
but in others it may remove the paint, so you have to be extra cautious.
HEPA vacuums with small attachments (and even cheesecloth or another
barrier to avoid sucking up hair or feathers) are your friends for an
initial cleanup but I would suggest collaborating with a conservator before
doing anything. It doesn't mean you'll have to have all taxidermy treated
by a conservator, but it may be that certain specimens that are more prone
to damage need that kind of expertise. Let me know if you want to chat
further.

Finally, the best approach, as you probably know, is to avoid this in the
first place, so it may be that you need to start thinking of mitigation
strategies or talk to people that run the facilities, so you can avoid
future similar situations. I'm also happy to provide any insight on
preventive measures.

Best of luck!
Mariana

*Mariana Di Giacomo, PhD*
*Natural History Conservator, Yale Peabody Museum*
Associate Editor, Collection Forum, SPNHC
Secretary/Communications APOYOnline

El mar, 20 sept 2022 a las 12:11, John E Simmons (<simmons.johne at gmail.com>)
escribió:

> Do not use bleach on skeletons--it will damage the bone and it is very
> difficult to remove completely (we know this from its past use to clean
> skeletons).
>
> Instead, clean the bones with a high concentration of ethyl alcohol. Ethyl
> alcohol at concentrations of 70% or higher (I recommend using
> full-strength, 96%) is an excellent biocide, and the higher concentrations
> will evaporate quickly from the surface, reducing the chances of causing
> more damage to the bone. Keep in mind that any surface the mold is growing
> on will already be damaged by the mold, so adding chemicals to it can cause
> even more damage.
>
> Taxidermy specimens possibly can be vacuumed using HEPA filtered vacuum,
> but I will leave advice on that one to one of the conservators on the list
> who has experience removing mold from hair and feathers.
>
> The cardboard boxes should be removed and destroyed. It will be very
> difficult to remove all the mold from cardboard, and of mentioned the
> cardboard surface will have already been compromised by the mold growth.
>
> Be sure to use appropriate Personal Protective Equipment (lab coat, mask,
> and goggles if necessary) and work under a fume hood to prevent spread of
> the spores around the building. Anyone who has a compromised respiratory
> system (e.g., asthma, emphysema) should stay clear of the infested area and
> cleaning activities.it
>
> I have attached a paper on cleaning a similar mold outbreak that you may
> find useful.
>
> --John
>
> John E. Simmons
> Writer and Museum Consultant
> Museologica
> *and*
> Associate Curator of Collections
> Earth and Mineral Science Museum & Art Gallery
> Penn State University
> *and*
> Investigador Asociado, Departamento de Ornitologia
> Museo de Historia Natural, Universidad Nacional Mayor de San Marcos, Lima
>
>
> On Tue, Sep 20, 2022 at 11:52 AM Chris Evelyn <christopher_evelyn at ucsb.edu>
> wrote:
>
>> Hello all,
>>
>> We have a pretty serious mold issue. Everything in the room has some
>> mold. The jars and surfaces can be cleaned but a few items are trickier so
>> I'd love some feedback:
>>
>> 1) Skeletal specimens (will 10% bleach solution work?)
>> 2) taxidermy specimens (will 10% bleach work?)
>> 3) cardboard boxes with small specimens (replace the boxes or just clean
>> them off?) I
>>
>> Attached are some images of the current situation.
>>
>> Thank you for your assistance!
>>
>> Chris
>>
>> Christopher J. Evelyn
>> Vertebrate Curatorial Manager & Asst. Researcher
>> Cheadle Center for Biodiversity and Ecological Restoration
>> University of California Santa Barbara
>> Ancestral Lands of the Coastal Band of the Chumash Nation
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