[Nhcoll-l] Lizard Hatchling and Egg Preparation

[Yatskievych, George A]

Sariah,

For something as small as a lizard egg, I wonder if you could try to find a critical-point dryer at some local university department. That basically results in drying the specimen three-dimensionally, although it would have to be handled carefully once dry as tissues can become very fragile. Once the sample is dry, you might even be able to replace the liquid in the egg with some clear substitute that is relatively inert if your intent with the display is to mimic an intact egg..

Good luck,

GY

George Yatskievych, Ph.D.
Botanist, Curator: Billie L. Turner Plant Resources Center, University of Texas at Austin
Main Bldg Rm 127, 110 Inner Campus Dr, Stop F0404, Austin, TX 78712-1711 U.S.A.
Tel. 512-471-5904; george.yatskievych at austin.utexas.edu<mailto:george.yatskievych at austin.utexas.edu>

From: Nhcoll-l <nhcoll-l-bounces at mailman.yale.edu> On Behalf Of Sariah Rushing
Sent: Wednesday, October 1, 2025 5:45 PM
To: nhcoll-l at mailman.yale.edu
Subject: [Nhcoll-l] Lizard Hatchling and Egg Preparation

Hello,
We recently obtained a deceased, unhatched western fence lizard hatchling with the eggshell cut open from our wildlife hospital. Our goal for this specimen is to utilize it for exhibit purposes, potentially for teaching opportunities, and I am working towards making our collection more accessible for research purposes as well. That being said, I would love any advice on potential ways to prepare this specimen.

I know generally wet preparation would be the ideal method to preserve a small specimen like this. That being said, we do not have the materials or the correct type of storage space to do this. I would like to use the freeze-drying method, but the Bay Area (California) seems not to have many taxidermists. Others I have asked have the same problem, where the taxidermists we have used in the past are either retiring or not responsive. I know it's not considered the proper way to freeze-dry, but there is a way to do it with a frost-free freezer, which I have on-site. I have never done the freezer method myself. I know this method can work, as I have some specimens in the frost-free freezer that were utilized for this purpose by a previous collector, though there are no notes as to who this was. I don't know if anyone has tried this before and could offer guidance, or could share other ways to potentially prep this specimen in-house.

Thank you,

[https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/XzmUiTf7LGIyutDBNZgCM2Q-dYzFZiv3lfIbK48pu9WMpAPb07RJk69__Jor7yuQP5eW6VuJfu6uhzB2la5w9Um1YH7omqbfaMCW1ZkNte348e86tvna8GEOVxHI6f5VFQ8TCpMV]



Sariah Rushing

Pronouns: she/her/hers

Natural History Collections Specialist

Lindsay Wildlife Experience

Celebrating 70 Years Wild!

925-627-2937 | srushing at lindsaywildlife.org<mailto:srushing at lindsaywildlife.org>

193<https://maps.google.com/?q=1931+First+Avenue,+Walnut+Creek+94597&entry=gmail&source=g>1 First Avenue, Walnut Creek 94597<https://maps.google.com/?q=1931+First+Avenue,+Walnut+Creek+94597&entry=gmail&source=g>
My working hours are Sunday - Thursday from 9 AM - 5 PM. I will get back to you as soon as possible, thank you.
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://mailman.yale.edu/pipermail/nhcoll-l/attachments/20251001/fb560203/attachment.html>