[Nhcoll-l] Lizard Hatchling and Egg Preparation

Thu Oct 2 10:06:28 EDT 2025

Here's some advice for an expedient way to make an education specimen on a
budget using the tools, materials, and expertise any nature-focused place
is likely to have available.  My advice is not necessarily good for
long-term collections, but can make useful stuff that engages the public.
(Conservators may, justifiably, not like my advice for the kind of
specimens they steward.)

Florists can freeze dry stuff like this easily.  Just make sure it stays
frozen at all times after you pose it (ie, while being delivered and at
other points before it goes into the freeze dryer) since florists don't
necessarily understand the necessary posing that you want.  You may want to
use insect pins to pose the specimen regardless of who does the work; this
can give an added measure of safety if the specimen does thaw prematurely.
Being so small, the average bouquet dry time will probably be sufficient
for your lizard.

You can also use a frost-free freezer with a decent possibility of
success.  Weigh the specimen before it goes into the freezer, then forget
about it.  When you remember it at some point months later, see if it feels
lighter.  If so, weigh it.  Also touch it to see if it feels cold (ie has
enough water in it to conduct heat away from your finger.)  If it is still
heavy or very cold, put it back in the freezer and wait again.  Once you
think it might be ready, put it on your desk while you are doing computer
work so that you can watch and touch the specimen frequently.  If it has
even the smallest positional or dimensional change or any condensation,
it's not done "drying" (ie, being freezer burned) so toss it back in the
freezer for a few months.

I have successfully "freeze-dried" flayed things as large as squirrels with
this process.  I have not been successful with skin-on specimens this
large.  The method is not always successful, regardless of specimen.  I've
even had baby pigeons fail (a thin-skinned specimen that should be easy and
would be nearly perfect in a real lyophilizer.)  On the other hand, I have
done many amphibians and even other small birds successfully.  The results
are seldom as nice as the products from a real freeze dryer, but even those
need glass eyes and paint, so the restoration work is not much more effort.

Of note: fats don't freeze dry.  Their slow seepage through the specimen
may eventually destroy the product.  That said, I have a bullsnake that has
some discoloration and stickiness 25 years after preservation in a real
freeze dryer, but nothing worse than the average traditionally-mounted duck
foot of the same age.  Egg yolks though, seem to oxidize quickly and
destroy the shell.  I had some turtle eggs we used in much the way you
describe.  Those prepared by my most meticulous student are still in use.
Those prepared less meticulously, that retained a bit of yolk, have
yellowed and fallen apart.  (They were sharing the same polyester-padded,
polystyrene box and were from the same water-deposited clutch.)  Reptile
eggs also change dimensionally when they dry, regardless of method.

So, I would rinse out the egg with soapy (Dawn) water.  Trim off any yolk
or other debris from the hatchling and rinse it in soapy water, too.  Dry
the whole thing with a rinse in alcohol (whatever kind you have).  Pose the
lizard on a block of foam with insect pins (they can pierce the specimen)
and freeze it, then continue with your prefered method of "drying."  I
would stuff the egg with polyester batting and pose it (without piercing)
and dry it separately.  If the egg works out and you can put the lizard
back in, great.  If not, you still have a nice lizard and can make an epoxy
clay egg to suit your display needs while showing the real shell, in
whatever condition it is in, next to the specimen.  If you want the lizard
specimen to have glass eyes, put those in before the drying process.  If
you have some art skills, you can also just dry the specimen, then put a
drop of clear or tinted fingernail polish to lend some shine.  A thin wash
of lacquer based paints can restore the markings (water based paints may
rehydrate too much, especially when doing thin washes.)   A light spritz of
your favorite clear coat can add the necessary level shine for the context.

I hope this helps you and others get use out of a specimen that would
otherwise be discarded.

--Steve

On Wed, Oct 1, 2025 at 6:45 PM Sariah Rushing <srushing at lindsaywildlife.org>
wrote:

> 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,
>
>
> *Sariah Rushing*
>
> Pronouns: she/her/hers
>
> Natural History Collections Specialist
>
> Lindsay Wildlife Experience
>
> *Celebrating 70 Years Wild!*
>
> 925-627-2937 | 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
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