[Nhcoll-l] Disposing of Bird Teaching Specimens

[Nickson Otieno]

Hello Makayla,
Depending on what species and how well/widely studied they are, you might
consider donating them a lab/institute with a strong focus on studies
related to stable isotope analysis or barcoding using ancient DNA . They
might find those specimens very valuable especially given the increasingly
stringent rues regarding permits for specimens collection and material
transfer worldwide.
Nickson Otieno
National Museums of Kenya

On Fri, Mar 20, 2026 at 9:07 PM Makayla Dean <MDean at cincymuseum.org> wrote:

> Hi all,
>
> We've recently culled about 1/3 of our ornithology teaching specimens
> because they were in exceptionally poor condition: heads smashed,
> wings/tails/feet ripped off, exceptionally poor preparation, etc. We have
> duplicates of the culled species in our teaching collection and none of the
> specimens have any type of data associated with them; they were prepared
> for outreach and teaching. We've gone through all of the institutional
> processes and paperwork to remove these specimens from the collection, but
> now we're stuck with what to actually do with them. To the best of our
> knowledge, the specimens were not prepared with any harmful compounds, such
> as arsenic, mercury, or lead. The species are not CITES or ESA listed, but
> are all protected under the MBTA.
>
> We think the specimens are in too poor condition to be useful to any other
> educational institute, so we are looking for ways to dispose of the
> specimens. Does anyone have any advice on disposing of these specimens that
> isn't just tossing them into a dumpster?
>
> Best,
> Makayla
>
> *Makayla Dean | *they/them
>
> Manager, Zoology Collections & DNA Lab
>
> Cincinnati Museum Center
>
> 1301 Western Avenue, Cincinnati, Ohio 45203
> MDean at cincymuseum
> C: (513) 549-6251
>
> O: (513) 287-7000 ext 7307
>
> cincymuseum.org
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