Taxidermy Nephila tips?

[Biollantefan54]

Hey everyone, I wasn’t sure where to post this but I have some Trichonephila clavata that I want to taxidermy when they pass and put in a shadow box for display. I have had one pass already, and I have two more adults that just laid sacs and will probably not last much longer. The one that already passed I attempted to fix up but I want it to be better lol. I know it’s a long shot but does anyone have experience with this? It’s difficult to get their abdomens natural looking, and I also noticed that it is translucent. The cotton inside shows through and it isn’t realistic looking. It’s also pretty difficult to stuff the abdomen as it is quite large but at the same time extremely fragile. Does anyone have any tips on how to go about doing this? Sorry if this wasn’t the right place to post but I wasn’t sure where else.

 

[Nlev]

Unfortunately spiders are soft bodied, and won't preserve well unless placed into 70% ethanol. Since my guess is that this is not the way you want to preserve your specimen, you could try freeze drying it, or cutting out the insides and stuffing (I don't know how well this will work since I have never don't it with anything other than a tarantula).

 

[Gilligan]

Hello. Have you tried dyeing cotton the desired color? Or using modeling clay as a mould? In taxidermy we use drying modeling clay for detailed work.

 

[Biollantefan54]

Yeah I want to have it stuffed and put in a display case. I hadn’t thought about using modeling clay before, that would probably work well, I have a lot lying around I can try. That’s also a good idea about dying the cotton as well! Thanks for the tips

 

[Gilligan]

No problem! I'm a taxidermist and I find it fun to help others with their projects.

 

[The Snark]

Probably your best bet is to experiment with BKC, BenzalKonium Chloride. It's a very powerful sterilizing agent that kills any organism it comes in contact with and is commonly used in micro dosages as a food preservative. Downside is the crap is nasty to work with and a single drop of only 1% concentration in free air plays hell with your eyes, sinuses and lungs.
With BKC present and then the specimen placed in a hermetically sealed container it should be good for the long haul.

I'm a taxidermist

Do taxidermists use BKC? If not, why not?

 

[Gilligan]

Do taxidermists use BKC? If not, why not?
[/QUOTE]
I haven't heard of any taxidermists using it. What effects it will have on the fur or skin of the specimen is relatively unknown and taxidermists prefer to know exactly what the chemicals we use will do. Main concerns would be how it will effect the longevity of the specimen, if it will discolor the fur or skin, if it makes anything brittle, stuff like that.

 

[The Snark]

Main concerns would be how it will effect the longevity of the specimen, if it will discolor the fur or skin, if it makes anything brittle, stuff like that.

Yups. Seems to be a wild card all over the biocidal spectrum. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/14726922/
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/36140416/
Seems like it might be worth testing in taxidermy. With BKC's low specific gravity it seeps in everywhere and even the toughest mold spores get destroyed. Worth mentioning, it is a very poor oxidizer - bleaching agent.

 

[Salmonsaladsandwich]

With something as soft bodied as Nephila you're not going to preserve the colors and it's probably not gonna look very good as a dried specimen no matter what you do. Preserving them in alcohol or another liquid preservative will give you the best-looking specimens IMO.

 

[Biollantefan54]

With something as soft bodied as Nephila you're not going to preserve the colors and it's probably not gonna look very good as a dried specimen no matter what you do. Preserving them in alcohol or another liquid preservative will give you the best-looking specimens IMO.

Yeah unfortunately that’s true, I am not really interesting in wet specimens but i might do that with one of them. I have seen some decent Nephila pilipes for sale that look decent but yeah their abdomens don’t preserve well.

 

[The Snark]

With something as soft bodied as Nephila you're not going to preserve the colors

Something just occurred to me. If the internal organs of the animal can be stabilized, there are dozens of fine art conservation lacquers and varnishes especially formulated to preserve and protect the various mediums they are applied to without affecting the colors. One application I heard of was butterfly wings. A catalytic varnish applied that hermetically sealed them as well as forming a very hard durable coating. It was applied with a low pressure airbrush.

Potential source for further information on this would be the conservators at the Smithsonian Institute.

 

[Gilligan]

Yups. Seems to be a wild card all over the biocidal spectrum. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/14726922/
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/36140416/
Seems like it might be worth testing in taxidermy. With BKC's low specific gravity it seeps in everywhere and even the toughest mold spores get destroyed. Worth mentioning, it is a very poor oxidizer - bleaching agent.

I may have to start experimenting with this and see if it works. In theory it sounds good except for the bleaching. Thanks for suggesting it.

 

[The Snark]

In theory it sounds good except for the bleaching.

It doesn't bleach. The oxidizer, chlorine, escapes as a gas before the chemical reaction can take place. People dislike it as a black mold killer for this reason. It leaves the black stain though the dead spores slowly turn dark brown through natural oxidation from the air.
And of course, using the stuff at such concentrations, 1%+, requires a gasses and vapors respiration protection which isn't cheap. Goes right through N95 masks. Even triple thickness, speaking from experience. (Compliments/complicates the Covid loss of sense of smell exponentially)