Micro-dermestarium (Warning: Photos of dead fish getting eaten)

kyryah said:
I had an absolute HUGE Pacu years ago that I wanted to have taxidermied. I kept it in the freezer for awhile, but finally had to throw it away because I didn't have the bank. I wish I would have known/thought of this then!!!!

If I find another big dead catfish or pike down at the lake, want it?? :D

Kristina
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Problem there is shipping. Not really worth it in the long run.
However, I could send you some beetles some time, if you'd like to try this yourself! I don't want to right now, cause they all have mites.:mad2: I'm still working on getting rid of those. I have to keep the colony drier, and I might have to invest in some mite strips.
But once I get rid of those little buggers, I could send you a starter. Or you could catch your own locally. Its super easy to do. Just find some older roadkill. Not the super fresh stuff, the stuff thats been sitting around for a couple of weeks. There will be beetles there, trust me. Just bring gloves and a jar.
 
Notophthalmus said:
Cool stuff, man! If there are delicate areas you want to keep the beetles away from, you can brush a little formalin on them. Also, isopods work well for fragile specimens; they're less likely to pull pieces off and carry them away, or chew through ligaments.
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Woah, I see I have a fellow beetler out there! I've heard about using isopods. The other advantage there is that they pose no risk to the universities taxidermy collection.
I've heard of using formulin, but I haven't tried it yet. I'm gonna have to though, it would be great on fish fins and bird toes.
 
Since the kuhli went well, I threw in the other kuhli from the freezer. I also prepped the flying gecko I'm doing for LifelessForm. And I took pictures!

The gecko, pre-prep. He has thawed out. He must have sat out a bit before being frozen, cause his eyes are very sunk in.
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Skinned gecko. I accidentally pulled his tail off, so I put it in separately.
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Look at that arm! You can see every bone through the muscle.
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Head shot. Obviously I took his eyes out.
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I'll update later, and we'll see how he is progressing!
:nilly::nilly::nilly::nilly::nilly::nilly::nilly::nilly::nilly::nilly:
 
eww. that is gross. what is the purpose of this and where did you get the beetles
 
Awesome.
 
amazing. whered the beetles come from????
 
austinpetemo said:
amazing. whered the beetles come from????
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Well, the ones at my house are from the one I'm running at school in a 10 gallon tank. THOSE came from the Smithsonian's colony.
However, these guys are EASY to find, we only got them from the museum to save collecting time, and because we started in the winter.
If you want to get some on your own, just look for some older roadkill. Not the fresh, maggot filled kind, the "road jerky" kind. These guys usually come in after the maggots. Maggots require a LOT of moisture, but these guys can deal with slightly drier stuff. Just look for adults and larvae and grab a few.
Obviously, wear gloves.:lol2:
 
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