Monday, June 17, 2013

General Information About Bear Taxidermy

By Grace Daniels


Taxidermy is used when referring to the processes that go into preserving animal skins for the purpose of display or studies. This preparation, stuffing and mounting is primarily done on vertebrates. A lot of hunters use this as a trophy of their catches. The process is performed on many vertebrate species, including fish, mammals, reptiles, birds and amphibians. Bear taxidermy is quite popular, especially among Americans.

The individuals who do this kind of work are called taxidermists. These people may work as professionals hired by museums or other businesses, or do it recreationally as a hunter, fisherman or hobbyist. In either case, this work requires knowledge of tanning, sculpture and painting, and animal anatomy.

Preservation of animal skins is nothing new. In fact, embalmed animals were present in tombs with Egyptian mummies. The embalming process is separate from taxidermy. It usually puts the animals in lifelike poses. The 1700s saw the earliest form of preservation of birds for placement in natural history cabinets. Historically, clay was used for the purpose of shaping soft parts of the animal, but this technique made the specimens weigh more.

The peak of this process came during the Victorian era. It was during this time that there were more hunters and these pieces were collected as hunting trophies. They were also being used as decor for interior design projects.

Methods employed by taxidermists have gotten better over the years. They are no longer as toxic as they used to be and are of better quality. The initial step in this process is skinning. This is possible without opening up the body cavity. It will depend on the type, but skin is either preserved using special chemicals or tanned. The piece will later be added to a mannequin, which may be made from wool, polyurethane, wood or wire. Clay is used to attach the glass eyes. The objective is to have attractive, natural-looking results.

The preparation process will vary by animal. Usually the whole body of bears are preserved, while some other animals may only be left with their heads. In general, professionals are hired to do jobs on animals that are large in size. If individuals are unable to get the animal to the taxidermist in a timely manner, the hide is to be frozen so it stays preserved until mounting.

Prices of this type of service will range. Often it is relative to the services request and company doing the work. Non-hunters who are looking for a mounting of a bear can purchase one from the numerous retailers who sell taxidermy pieces. These come at different price points that may be based on the style of mounting, bear type and seller.

Stuffing and mounting animals is known as taxidermy. This process is done on a variety of vertebrate species, such as: mammals, amphibians, fish, reptiles and birds. Bear taxidermy is among the most popular types. Taxidermists may do this as a hobby or a profession. Correct preservation will last for a long amount of time. This practice of preservation has been around for hundreds of years but was more popular during the Victorian era.




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