Wildlife Museum Care, Use, and Procedures
Wildlife Museum. University of Minnesota, Crookston
Page 1 of2
J. P. Loegering, curator
Wildlife Museum
Dr. John P. Loegering, curator
Use of the Collections – To help maintain the specimens in good condition for future uses,
please follow these simple procedures in museums, at UMC as well as elsewhere.
.
1. Do not use excessive force on cabinet latches in either opening or closing them. This
applies to other museums as well which often have window-style rotating catches. These
should be turned in just enough to catch – not all the way in. When replacing hinge-less
doors, be very careful that the bottom lip is correctly fitted upon closure.
2. Do no slide drawers rapidly in or out and avoid slamming the drawer into the back of the
cabinet. Sudden stops (or drops) damage skulls, especially the smaller skulls.
3. Handling specimens: use clean hands, and proper sized calipers. Do not pick up by
label, tail, feet, ears, or hair. In general, minimize handling as much as possible. Wash
your hands when you leave the museum.
4. When examining the specimens, replace each exactly where you found it.
5. Examine only one skeletal specimen at a time to avoid confusing bones.
[UMC has very few skeletal specimens so this is general not an issue in Crookston]
6. Be alert for loose or separate teeth.
7. Always handle specimens while seated or over a table (i.e., minimize the risk of dropping
a specimen from any height above a few inches).
8. Do not physically alter specimens or make changes on labels without permission from the
curator.
9. If you find errors in the collections or database, notify the curator.
10. Be sure to wash your hands after handling specimens as some of the older ones could
have been prepared with arsenic under the skin or may have been fumigated with various
chemicals at some time in the past. All are toxic if ingested or adsorbed through the skin.
J. P. Loegering: D:\533565574.doc, 2/16/2016
Wildlife Museum Care, Use, and Procedures
Wildlife Museum. University of Minnesota, Crookston
Page 2 of2
J. P. Loegering, curator
Typical Procedures for Receiving Specimens We are actively receiving specimens from
several sources.
1. Specimen is received from various sources. It is labeled with complete information,
bagged, freezer wrapped, and placed in the storage freezer.
2. All avian specimens are noted on the collection inventory sheet taped to the front of the
freezer. NOTE that this is required by the state and federal agencies to satisfy the
requirements for holding a salvage permit.
3. Specimens are periodically inventoried.
4. Specimens are thawed and prepared as time permits.
5. Following study skin preparation, the tagged skulls are brought to the dermestid colony
for cleaning.
6. Following cleaning they are soaked in Ammonium Hydroxide and then cleaned further
7. Following this rigorous cleaning, they are bagged and frozen before returning to the
museum to prevent the introduction of dermestid beetle larvae back into the museum.
8. Clean dry skulls are then matched with their study skin and jointly cataloged with a
permanent museum number
9. This number is recorded in the electronic catalog, on the both museum tags, and in
permanent ink on the skull (cranium and both dentaries).
J. P. Loegering: D:\533565574.doc, 2/16/2016