Such an old taxidermy mount was undoubtedly processed in the "old days" when arsenical dusts were rubbed into the skin and fur by the taxidermist. The Smithsonian houses lots of these old mounts, especially Teddy Roosevelt's trophies. Except for dust, they are in good shape today.
Any insect larva which begins to feed on the fur will be killed. No need to do any further "pest proofing". Just warn those who work on the mount and keep it in an enclosure away from public hands when displayed. Arsenicals are stomach poisons, not dermal poisons. Therefore the risk of toxicity to humans is low as long as one wears appropriate gloves and washes their hands if they've handled the specimen. Tom Parker -----Original Message----- From: Shirley Albright <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: pestlist@museumpests.net Sent: Tue, 12 Aug 2008 3:40 pm Subject: [pestlist] Dermestid casing Hi folks, We have a taxidermied polar bear which was recently looked at carefully after years behind ‘glass’. One – yes, just one – empty dermestid casing was found on it. A local conservator thinks we should have the object treated for insects and tested for arsenic/mercuric salts before we do anything restorative. I have mixed feelings about the need for the arsenic testing since the object will be going back on exhibit out of visitor access and I would assume that any reputable taxidermist would be cautious about handling old mounts during the co nservation process. However, I’d appreciate some viewpoints about this. Also, barring other visible signs of infestation for 4 years or more, should we subject the mount to some undisclosed form of ‘insect-proofing’? Or…are we inviting trouble? I’d like to know what methods are going to be used to ‘insect-proof’ the mount before we give the go-ahead even if it is deemed the responsible thing to do. Any viewpoints or suggestions? Comments? Many thanks in advance. Telephone or email me directly if you’d prefer. Shirley S. Albright Manager, Technology and Museum Information Systems New Jersey State Museum 240 W. State St., 14th floor PO Box 530 Trenton, NJ 08625-0530 (office) 609.292.6331 (fax) 609.292.7636
