Immediately after a bird is killed the throat and nostrils should be
stuffed with tow, cotton or fine rags, and a small quantity wound round
the bill, to prevent the blood from staining the plumage; but should any
get on the feathers, notwithstanding this precaution, the sooner it is
removed the better, which should be effected by a sponge which has been
merely moistened in water. Too much dispatch cannot be used in removing
the skin, if the bird is shot in a warm climate; but, in temperate
regions, the bird may be allowed to cool.
In proceeding to skin the bird it should be laid on its back and the
feathers of the breast separated to the right and left, when a broad
interval will be discovered, reaching from the top to the bottom of the
breast-bone.
A sharp penknife, or scalpel, must be inserted at the point of the bone,
and cut the outer skin from thence to the vent, taking care not to
penetrate so deep as the flesh, or upon the inner skin which covers the
intestines. The skin will then easily be separated from the flesh, in
larger specimens by the fingers, or in smaller ones by passing a small
blunt instrument betwixt the skin and body, such as the end of the
scalpel handle; with this you may reach the back. The thighs should now
be pressed inwards, as in the common method of skinning a rabbit, and
the skin turned back, so far as to enable you to separate the legs from
the body at the knee-joint. The skin is then pulled downwards as low as
the rump, which is cut close by, the insertion of the tail, but in such
a manner as not to injure its feathers. The skin is now drawn upwards
the length of the wings, the bones of which must also be cut at the
shoulder-joints; it is then pulled up till all the back part of the
skull is laid bare, when the vertebræ of the neck are separated from the
head, and the whole body is now separated from the skin. You next
proceed to remove the brain, through the opening of the skull, for which
purpose it may be enlarged by a hollow chisel, or other iron instrument.
The eyes must then be taken out, by breaking the slender bones which
separate the orbits from the top of the mouth, in which you may be
assisted by pressing the eyes gently inwards, so as not to break them.
In skinning the neck, great care must be taken not to enlarge the
opening of the ears, and not to injure the eyelids. The whole of the
flesh is next to be removed from the under mandible.
Several species will not admit of the skin being thus pulled over their
heads, from the smallness of their necks; some woodpeckers, ducks, etc.,
fall under this description; in which case a longitudinal incision is
made under the throat, so as to admit of the head being turned out,
which must be neatly sewed up before stuffing. The flesh from the head,
wings, legs and rump, must then be carefully removed with a knife, and
the cavities of the skull filled with cotton or tow. The whole inside of
the skin, head, etc., must be well rubbed with arsenical soap, or
preserving powder, or spirits of turpentine, or the solution of
corrosive sublimate. When it is wished to stuff the bird, it may now be
immediately done, as it will easily dry if in a warm climate; but in
low, damp countries, it will require artificial heat to do it
effectually.
When the skins are merely wished preserved, the bones of the legs and
wings should be wrapped round with cotton or tow, so as to supply the
place of the flesh; the skin is then inverted and hung up to dry, after
using the arsenical soap, as above directed; before doing which, in
larger birds, a thread or small string may be drawn through the rump,
and passed up the inside of the neck and drawn through the bill, to
prevent the head from stretching too much by its own weight. In larger
specimens, where cotton or tow is not easily to be met with, well dried
hay may be used.
The incision for removing the skin is frequently made under the wings.
This may be done with marine birds to advantage. The penguins and divers
may be skinned by making the incision in the back.
The tongue should either be kept in the mouth, or sent home separately
with the birds.
The greatest care must be taken to prevent the fat and oily matter, so
common to sea-birds, from getting on the feathers: pounded chalk will be
found an excellent absorbent for applying to these birds.
In sending home specimens of birds, they should be each wrapped in paper
and closely packed in a box; and camphor, preserving powder, and strong
aromatics, strewed amongst them, to prevent them from being attacked by
insects; and they ought to be kept in a very dry part of the vessel.
It is of the utmost consequence to know the color of the eyes and legs
of birds, and these things should be carefully noted the moment they are
killed; and it should also be mentioned whether they are male or female;
such a memorandum ought to be attached to the birds by a ticket. The
season of the year in which the bird is killed, must also be mentioned.
It is also of much consequence to have good skeletons, and, for this
purpose, the carcases may be sent home in a barrel, either in spirits or
a strong solution of salt and water.
Mr. Salt, while in Abyssinia, packed his bird-skins between sheets of
paper, in the same manner as a hortus siccus, or herbarium, and they
reached England in perfect safety, and made excellent specimens when set
up. In warm climates, the boxes should be well closed, and the seams
filled with warm pitch on the outside, to prevent the intrusion of
insects; and the inside should be supplied with camphor, musk, or
tobacco-dust, which will prevent the attacks of the smaller insects.
Till practice has given facility to the operator, it will assist in
keeping the feathers clean, if, as he opens the skin of the breast, he
pins pieces of paper or linen cloth on the outside; but, after a few
trials, this will be unnecessary.
Some of the marine fowls are so fat that there is much trouble in
separating it from the skin, and, in warm weather, great attention will
be required to prevent it from running on the feathers. As much as
possible should be scraped off, in the first place, with a blunt
table-knife or palate-knife, and a quantity of powdered chalk applied,
to absorb what remains, which, when saturated with the oily matter,
should be scraped off, and a fresh supply used; after which a much
larger proportion of the preserving powder should be applied than in
other birds which are not fat.
When shooting on the sea coast, if the ornithologist is not provided
with these requisites for absorbing the oil, which flows quickly from
any wounds of the skin, he will find dry sand a tolerable substitute.
If, however, after every precaution, the oily matter should get on the
feathers, the sooner it is removed the better, as, in birds where the
plumage is white, if it is allowed to become hardened it will produce a
very disagreeable appearance; and, besides, render that part
particularly liable to the attack of insects. There are several
effectual methods of removing the greasy stains; the first, safest, and
best is, by taking a quantity of diluted ox-gall—or, where it cannot be
commanded, sheep’s-gall, or that of any other animal—mix it with about
double the quantity of water, and apply it with a sponge to the place
which the fatty matter has touched, when it will immediately remove it.
The next is by using a solution of salts of tartar, or potash, or soda.
This must be made very weak, not exceeding half a teaspoonful to a cup
of water, which will have the same effect as the gall. Whichever of
these are used, the place must be immediately afterwards washed in pure
water, so as to leave none of the gall or alkaline substance remaining.
The gall has a gummy tendency, and will glue together the fibers of the
feathers, and, besides, it has a great attraction for moisture, and, in
humid weather, will become damp, and therefore produce mould; the other
alkaline substances must also be used with much caution and quickness,
because they have the power of changing the colors of the plumage, so
that they are most useful in white plumage, and therefore should only be
used on colored feathers, where gall cannot be procured.
One general observation applies to the preservation of all animal skins,
which is, they must be made perfectly dry, so that the sooner they are
exposed to a free current of air the better; and unless they are
speedily and thoroughly dried, the skin will become putrid and rotten,
and the hair or feathers will consequently fall off. If a skin is
properly dried, soon after it is killed, it will keep a considerable
time without any preservative whatever, only it will be the more liable
to be attacked by insects afterwards.
The following excellent general directions for skinning are given by Mr.
Waterton:—“While dissecting, it will be of use to keep in mind, that in
taking off the skin from the body, by means of your fingers and little
knife, you must try to shove it, in lieu of pulling it, lest you stretch
it.
“That you must press as lightly as possible on the bird, and every now
and then take a view of it, to see that the feathers, etc., are all
right.
“That when you come to the head, you must take care that the body of the
skin rest on your knee, for if you allow it to dangle from your hand,
its own weight will stretch it too much.
“That, throughout the whole operation, as fast as you detach the skin
from the body, you must put cotton immediately betwixt the body and it,
and this will effectually prevent any fat, blood, or moisture, from
coming in contact with the plumage.
“As you can seldom get a bird without shooting it, a line or two on this
head will be necessary. If the bird be still alive, press it hard with
your finger and thumb, just behind the wings, and it will soon expire.
Carry it by the legs, and then, the body being reversed, the blood
cannot escape down the plumage and through the shot-holes. As blood will
have often issued out, before you have laid hold of the bird, find out
the shot-holes, by dividing the feathers with your fingers, and blowing
on them; and then, with your pen-knife, or the leaf of a tree, carefully
remove the clotted blood, and put a little cotton on the hole. If, after
all, the plumage has not escaped the marks of blood, or if it has
imbibed slime from the ground, wash the part in water, without soap, and
keep gently agitating the feathers with your fingers, till they are
quite dry. Were you to wash them, and leave them dry by themselves, they
would have a very mean and shriveled appearance.
“In the act of skinning a bird, you must either have it upon a table, or
upon your knee; probably you will prefer your knee, because, when you
cross one knee over the other, and have the bird upon the uppermost, you
can raise it to your eye, or lower it, at pleasure, by means of the foot
on the ground; and then your knee will always move in unison with your
body, by which much stooping will be avoided, and lassitude prevented.”
=Stuffing Birds.= The first thing to be done in stuffing is to replace
the skull, after it has been well anointed with the arsenical soap, and
washed with the solution of corrosive sublimate inside. The thread, with
which the beak is tied, is taken hold of by the left hand, and the head
is repassed into the neck with the forefinger of the right hand, while
the thread is pulled on the opposite side; and we are careful that the
feathers, at the margin of the opening, do not enter with the edges of
the skin. The bird is now laid on the table with the head turned towards
the left hand, and the legs and wings adjusted to their proper
situation. A flat piece of lead, about a pound in weight, is laid on the
tail, while the feathers of the margins of the opening are raised by the
forefinger and thumb of the left hand, to prevent their being soiled.
The inside of the neck is now coated with the arsenical soap; flax is
stuffed into it, but not too tightly. The back and rump are anointed,
and the body should then be stuffed with tow, to about a third of the
thickness required, so that the wire may have a sort of cushion to rest
on.
Four pieces of wire are then prepared, of the thickness proportionate to
the size of the bird to be stuffed. The centerpiece should be somewhat
longer than the body of the bird. At about a fourth of its length a
small ring is formed, by the assistance of the round pincers or plyers,
and the other end is pointed with a file. This wire is oiled and
introduced across the skull, and passed into the neck, through the
center of the flax or tow with which it is stuffed, the ring being
situated toward the anterior part of the skull, for the purpose of
receiving the points of each of the wires that are passed through the
feet and thighs.
The following is the mode in which this perforation is effected: A hole
is bored with a bradawl the caliber of the wire which it is intended to
use. The wire, which is to continue in the leg, is passed across the
knee and brought out interiorly, and, placing it into the ring above
mentioned, the same operation is performed on the other side. The
extremities of the wires of the legs, and the end of the central wire
beyond the ring, are all twisted together with flat pincers, and then
bent towards the tail. The tail-bearer is next formed, which consists of
the fourth piece of wire, with which an oval is formed, by twisting the
two ends two or three turns, so that they may form a kind of fork, with
the oval nearly the length of the body of the bird; the two points of
the fork must be sharpened with a file, and near enough to enable them
to enter the rump, through which they must pass, and their points will
be concealed by the rectrices, or large straight tail feathers, while
the oval is within the body of the bird. If the bird is large, the
tail-bearer must be firmly attached to the interior wires, by twisting a
small wire several times round both. But unless the bird be very large,
it may remain quite free.
All the parts of the skin at which we can come must be thoroughly rubbed
with preserving soap, the rump in particular, which should besides be
soaked with the solution of corrosive sublimate. The stuffing is now
proceeded with, by inserting chopped flax or tow, till it has attained
its proper dimensions. The skin is brought together and sewed up, while
we take the greatest care to separate the feathers at every stitch.
The orbits of the eyes are next finished, by inserting, with small
forceps and a short stuffing stick, a small quantity of chopped cotton,
while attention is paid to round the eyelids properly. The glass eyes
are now inserted, taking care to place them properly under the eyelids.
But, before fixing the eye, a little calcareous cement must be used, to
prevent them from coming out. If any part of the nictitating membrane is
visible below, it must be pushed up with the steel point.
The stuffing of the bird being now completed, the next thing is to place
it either on a branch, or, if a bird which does not sit on trees, on a
piece of plank; whichever of these it is, two holes are bored for the
reception of the wires, which have been allowed to protrude from the
soles of the feet, for fixing the bird. (See fig. 8.) These, of course,
are pierced in such situations as are necessary for the attitude or
position of the legs. The wires are put through these holes, and twisted
so as to secure the bird in its position. The attitude of the bird will,
of course, depend upon the fancy and taste of the operator, and ought to
be in conformity with the manners of the bird in a living state.
The wire frame-work, above described, is the most simple of any in its
construction, and is better adapted for small than large birds. Indeed,
it will hardly suit those of the larger species. The following is
another method of constructing the framework, which may be used either
in large or small birds:
Like the former it is constructed of four pieces of wire. The center
piece should be double the length of the bird; it is bent at a third of
its length in an oval form, and twisted two turns, the shortest end
being passed into the oval, and then raised against the longer end, so
as to produce a ring at the end, outside of the oval, large enough to
admit the two wires which pass from the feet to the inside of the bird.
It is now twisted a second time, and firmly united to the longer end,
which ought to be straight, with a sharp point, effected by means of a
file. As before directed, it is rubbed with oil, and forced through the
stuffing of the neck. It ought to be so constructed, by measurement,
that the oval part of the wire shall be in the center of the body
inside. The wires of the feet and legs, as before directed, ought to be
straight and pointed, and passed through the soles of the feet as
before. When the point is penetrated, the other end of the wire may be
bent, so that by means of it we may be able to assist in forcing up the
remainder of the wire. The two internal ends of the foot-wires are
twisted together, and curved within, so as to pass through the small
circle or ring of the middle branch above the oval, to each side of
which they are now attached with a piece of small string.
The tail-bearer is constructed on the same principles, and attached in
the same manner, as before described, and the latter apparatus is
introduced after the neck and back are finished in the stuffing.
This practice of introducing the neck-wire, after the neck is stuffed,
was first adopted at the Jardin des Plantes at Paris, and is now
invariably adopted in that establishment in preference to introducing it
before the neck is stuffed. The neck of a swan or other long-necked and
large birds, are even done so. It is unquestionably the best plan which
has hitherto been discovered, as it preserves the cylindrical shape of
the neck.
=Mr. Bullock’s Method of Stuffing Birds.= Mr. Bullock, of the London
Museum, Egyptian Hall, had another method of arranging the wires which,
after what we have already said, will be easily comprehended by a
reference to Fig. 8, where we have given a figure of his mode. After the
skin is taken off and prepared, different sized nealed iron wires are
procured, according to the size of the bird they are to support. The
skin is laid on its back without stretching it; cut two pieces of wire,
the one rather longer than the bird, and the other shorter, so as not to
reach to the head of the bird, twist them together, sharpen the ends of
the longer by means of a file, and pass one end through the rump and the
other through the crown of the head, near the base of the bill. Care
must be taken not to extend the neck beyond its ordinary length—a very
common fault in most preservers. Lay a little tow along the back of the
skin for the wire to rest on, then take two other pieces of strong wire
and file them to a point at one end; these are passed through the soles
of the feet and up the center of the leg-bone, or tarsus. When within
the body, they are to be fastened to the first wires by twisting them
together, which, when accomplished, may be supposed to represent the
back bone. The wire should be left two or three inches out of the soles
of the feet, to fasten them in a standing position, as before directed.
Two smaller wires are then passed through the wings, as in the legs, and
afterwards fastened to the back wires a little higher up than the leg
wires, taking care that no part of the skin is to be extended beyond its
natural position.
=A New and Easier Method of Bird Skinning and Stuffing.= A fair specimen
being obtained, take common cotton wadding, and with an ordinary
paint-brush stick plug the throat, nostrils, and, in large birds, the
ears, with it, so that when the skin is turned no juices may flow and
spoil the feathers; you must then provide yourself with the following
articles: A knife of this kind, which is very common; a pair of cutting
plyers, a pair of strong scissors, of a moderate size; a button-hook, a
marrow spoon, and a hand-vice. With these, a needle and thread, and a
sharpener of some kind, to give your knife an occasional touch, you are
prepared, so far as implements go. Then provide yourself with annealed
iron wire of various sizes; some you may buy ready for use, some not;
but you can anneal it yourself by making it red hot in the fire, and
letting it cool in the air. Common hemp is the next article, cotton
wadding, pounded whitening, and pounded alum, or chloride of lime; as to
the poisons which are used, they will be spoken of by and by. You should
also have a common bradawl or two, and some pieces of quarter-inch pine
whereon to stand the specimens when preserved, if to be placed as
walking on a plane; if not, some small pieces of twigs or small branches
of trees should be kept ready for use, of various sizes, according to
the size of the bird. Cedar, or common laurel cut in December, will be
found to answer best, but this must be regulated by fancy and the
requirements of the case; oak boughs are sometimes of good shape.
The best time for preserving specimens is in spring, because then the
cock birds are in the best feather, and the weather is not too warm. In
mild weather three days is a good time to keep a bird, as then the skin
will part from the flesh easily. If a specimen has bled much over the
feathers, so as to damage them, wash them carefully but thoroughly with
warm water and a sponge, and immediately cover them with pounded
whitening, which will adhere to them. Dry it as it hangs upon them
slowly before the fire, and then triturating the hardened lumps gently
between the fingers, the feathers will come out almost as clean as ever.
To test whether the specimen is too decomposed to skin, try the feathers
about the auriculars, and just above the tail, and if they do not move
you may safely proceed.
Lay the bird on his back, and, parting the feathers from the insertion
of the neck to the tail, you will find in most birds a spare space. Cut
the skin the whole length of this, and, passing the finger under it on
either side, by laying hold of one leg and bending it forward, you will
be able to bring the bare knee through the opening you have made; with
your scissors cut it through at the joint; pull the shank still adhering
to the leg till the skin is turned back as far as it will go; denude the
bone of flesh and sinew, wrap a piece of hemp round it, steep in a
strong solution of the pounded alum, and then pull the leg by the claw,
by which means the skin will be brought again to its place.
After having served both legs alike, skin carefully round the back,
cutting off and leaving in the tail with that into which the feathers
grow, that is, the “Pope’s nose.” Serve the wing bones the same as the
leg, cutting them off close to the body, and turn the skin inside out
down to the head. The back of the skull will then appear, and you will
now find it of advantage, as soon as you have got the legs and tail
free, to tie a piece of string round the body, and hang it up as a
butcher skins a sheep. Make in the back of the skull a cut with your
knife, which you can turn back like a trap-door, and with the
marrow-spoon entirely clear out the brains; Having done this, wash the
interior of the skull thoroughly with the alum, and fill it with cotton
wadding. The next operation requires care and practice—namely, to get
out the eyes. This is done by cutting cautiously until the lids appear,
being careful not to cut the eye itself, and you can then, with a
forceps, which you will likewise find useful, pull each from its socket;
wipe the orifice carefully, wash it with the alum solution, and fill it
with cotton wadding. Cut off the neck close to the skull, wash the
stump, and the whole of the interior of the skin with the alum, and the
_skinning_ is done. Now comes the stuffing. The ordinary mode used by
bird-preservers is a simple one, and answers very well; there is a
French method, however, which has its advantages, and will be adverted
to hereafter. Take a piece of the wire suitable to the size of the bird
(Fig. 11)—that is, as large as the legs will carry—and bend it into the
following form, _a_, representing the neck, _b_, the body, and _c_, the
junction of the tail, allowing sufficient length of neck for the wire to
pass some distance beyond the head, and being sharpened at each end,
which may be done by obliquely cutting it with the plyers. Wind upon
this wire hemp to the size of the bird’s body, which you should have
lying by you to judge from, and it will present something of the
appearance of Fig. 12. You can shape it with the hand, but be careful
not to make it the least _too large_; and, after you have finished it to
your satisfaction, you may singe it, as the poulterer would singe a
fowl, which will make all neat; but be particular to wind the hemp very
tight. Then take the skin, lay it on the table on its back, and pass the
wire at the head into the marrow where the neck is cut off, through
above the roof of the mouth, and out at one nostril, and draw it up
close to the skull; turn the skin back, and draw it down over the hemp
body, and pass the wire spike, protruding at the lower end, through the
flesh upon which the tail grows, about the centre, and rather below than
above. The skin may now be adjusted to the hemp body, and sewn up,
beginning from the top of the breast, and being particularly careful
always to take the stitch from _inside_, otherwise you will draw in the
feathers at every pull. At first sew it very loose, and then, with the
button-hook, draw it together by degrees.
With the plyers cut two lengths of wire, long enough to pass up the legs
and into the neck, and leave something over to fasten the bird by to the
board or spray upon which it is to be placed. The next operation
requires some address and great practice, namely, the passing the wire
up the legs. This is done by forcing it into the center of the foot, and
up the back of the legs, into the hemp body, through it obliquely, and
into the neck, until it is pretty firm. In doing this, you must remember
the ordinary position of a bird when alive, and, therefore, instead of
passing the wire the whole way _within_ the skin of the leg, when you
get to the part where you have cut off the bone, that is, the
knee-joint, pass it through the skin to the outside, and in again,
through the skin, from the outside, where the knee would come naturally
in the attitude of standing or perching—it makes little difference
which. This is essential, because, if the wire be passed the whole way
_inside_ the skin, it produces a wrong placing of the legs. Fig. 13 will
illustrate this, a representing the line in which the wire should run.
The bird is now stuffed, and you may at once place it upon a spray or
board, as the case may be. In placing a bird upon a spray, the first
joint should be bent almost on a level with the foot; and, in placing a
bird on a board, one leg should be placed somewhat behind the other. If
the wings are intended to be closed, as is usually the case, bring them
into their place, which may be done by putting the fingers under them,
and pressing them together over the back; you may then pass a needle, or
large pin, of which you should have a good supply by you, through the
thick part of the upper wing into the body, and so by the lower wing,
and if you allow these to protrude, you may fasten to one of them a
piece of thread, and wind it carefully and lightly round the body, which
will keep the feathers in their places, and this thread should be kept
on for a fortnight or three weeks, until the bird is dry. The tail
should be kept in its place, also, for the same time, by a piece of thin
wire bent over it.
The only thing now to do is to put in the eyes. The color, of course,
depends on the bird, and these you may buy at any fishing-tackle store.
If you do not use eyes too large, you will find little difficulty; the
juice of the lids will act as a sufficient cement. As to the mounting, I
shall say nothing about that now, but shall only advert shortly to a
French method of preserving, which is more difficult, but has the
advantage of superior firmness. It is this: Measuring from the insertion
of the neck to the tail, make a wire frame. Upon this wind hemp for the
neck only, and place in the skin in the same way as before directed,
only that, instead of one wire being passed through that in which the
tail grows, it is a fork that is passed through it. Having formed this
frame, fit on to it two legs, and after the frame itself is in the skin,
pass these from the _inside_ down each leg, instead of from the outside,
and fasten them on to the frame with the plyers, by twisting the ends
round the frame. This will make all firm, and you can then fill the body
with cut hemp, and sew up. One word as to the other preparations used by
bird preservers. These are either corrosive sublimate or regulus of
arsenic, which is yellow and of a consistence like butter. As I have
said before, in cold weather, when there are no flies about, alum will
do perfectly well; in warm weather either of the two others may be used.
I should prefer the former—corrosive sublimate—as the other is “messy,”
and the chief object is to dry up anything which can be attacked by
flesh-seeking insects. When you have finished your bird, you can lay the
feathers with a large needle—it is as well to have one fixed in a handle
and kept for this purpose—and, tying the two mandibles of the bill
together with a piece of thread until the whole specimen has hardened
and dried, the work is done.