Anatomy of Preservation

[@piercehorvath]

Wow. I am yet again blown away from how cool bats are.

[@TuberoseKisser]

he put on that first glove so perfectly and quickly, im jealous

[@purplejellyfish395]

Jane Doe Deer me too

[@IeatMeatforBreakfast1234]

same

[@cindywitter-h2656]

I hate seeing dead bats though, I love them so much.

[@umichlsa]

The tasks shown in the video would generally be performed by a Specimen Curatorial Assistant or Assistant Curator, although Collections Managers and Curators will also do this sort of work from time to time. A degree in Evolutionary Biology is typically what a person is expected to have (or to be pursuing) to obtain these positions.

[@IslamKhan-tu9fv]

Plz explain the method of preservation of megabats and microbats .and also tell us about the tool which are used for preservation of bats.Thanks

[@TheRoyalInstitution]

We've featured this video on the Best of the Web section on the Ri Channel!

[@fullback118]

@Logan Vinson, The museum does not sell any of their specimens, as they must be retained for research and most require the possession of special permits.

[@aaron.silveira]

Awesome job! Is there a reason you didn’t just put the fresh specimen in the dermestid beetle tank? It seemed small enough to handle. Would there be a change in quality if you did?

[@umecologyandevolutionarybi8047]

Hi Aaron, we got you an answer from our mammal collection manager. He wasn't here at the timethe video was made but he said: I suspect the reason they removed the flesh because the animal was fixed formalin and preserved in ethanol prior to be cleaned by the dermestids. Formalin is toxic to dermestids, and we often have to go through great lengths to reduce the concentration in the flesh before feeding the colony. Removing the flesh certainly would have helped reduce the exposure to the dermestids. It also may have simply helped the process of cleaning the specimen for the video!

[@aaron.silveira]

UM EEB KZbin thank you so much for the reply! That makes a lot of sense

[@umecologyandevolutionarybi8047]

@@aaron.silveira Happy to help! Thanks for your interest.

[@fullback118]

UM EEB KZbin is exactly right. For the sake of the video, we wanted to include the process of defleshing a skeleton. It just so happened that we had a jar of preserved bats collected from South America many years earlier, so we used them. I did the defleshing both as a demonstration and to minimize toxicity to the dermestid colony. There was actually also a water soaking step that wasn't included in the video because it's atypical and not very interesting to watch. Defleshing also reduced the dermestid processing time to a single night. A fresh specimen (or even a frozen one) of this size would be easy work for this colony without prior defleshing. Larger specimens need to be defleshed first because the colony can't clean the carcass before it starts to rot. I know this is a late reply, but I wanted to clarify for anyone else reading your question! (I'm the guy in the video)

[@CaptTerrific]

Fascinating use of critters to remove all the organic bits - seems so obvious a choice in hindsight

[@ehhhhhhhhhh]

Beautifully made video. I love the fact that bugs are used rather than some chemical. Make more videos like this about different fields of study!

[@fullback118]

@themongoosedog The bugs are a species of Dermestid beetle, Dermestes maculatus, native to Michigan.

[@omarbonilla2410]

Awesome, very informative video, and great background song!

[@dakotatheskeleton]

Hi! I'm 12! I do this kind of stuff!!! ^^ I also clean bones!^^

[@ZephyrosNocte]

Careful with the decomposition, you should always use a mask when handling any type of corpse. Also I am curious, what do you use to clean them?

[@NewMessage]

What was the bat pickled in? It can't be alcohol or formalin , or it would drive off the dermestids.

[@purplejellyfish395]

New Message ikr maybe pickle juice

[@kccasekc]

An ethanol solution. From the source.

[@ple3911]

can you give me he name of the bugs in video

[@btojajj2425]

Vine de un poco de todo :)

[@TEMPLARIO-vp1os]

Igual jaja

[@stephanieurraza3004]

Sabes en que líquido tiene en el frasco a los murcielagos? Sera Alcohol etílico?

[@btojajj2425]

@@stephanieurraza3004 creo que si, pero el alcohol puede ser algo fuerte, supongo que es alguna otra sustancia que no degrade los huesos del esqueleto

[@edjohnson9494]

Thats AWESOME DANNO!!!!!! I knew that eating buffalo wings would serve you well after grad school!!!!!!

[@fullback118]

We normally use Elmer's All Purpose glue for skeletons of this size; it bonds well, dries clear, and is soluble in water (allowing for corrections even after the glue has set). It should be fine to use on the rib cage as well.

[@themongoosedog]

What type of bug are those?

[@purplebirble7135]

those are bats xD

[@Kniives01]

themongoosedog Dermestid

[@AdrianaBarron1]

Aquaspore I think they are talking about the bugs that ate the leftover tissue from the bat.

[@aguywhodoesstuff1116]

why do you just have a jar of bats?

[@jyo5764]

I want to preserve my dead reptile pet but is there any other way to keep to bones instead of feeding it to bugs? I don't have any access to those bugs

[@Kniives01]

rough rough maceration, just skin the reptile and leave it in water until its fully decayed then put in a strainer and clean the bones in hydrogren peroxide until white then finiehed

[@julesferrylabosvt5653]

What type of glue do you use?

[@mebelowthesea]

Hello! This video has been very helpful! I'm am actually making bat skeleton for Museum of Animal Skeletons in my faculty. I have one question : What type of glue do you use and can I use it also on bat is one of its ribs is broken? Thank You!

[@dadsfriendlyrobotcompany]

I'm a bio major and I've always found bats interesting. Do you guys sell your specimen spreads?

[@petsrulenow]

Very cool video. Fascinating to watch!

[@stephanieurraza3004]

Hola! Alguien que escriba en español y me diga que líquido tiene en el frasco a los murcielagos y alguna alternativa de hormigas asesinas que pueda usar acá en Argentina?

[@CesarCordova]

Formol

[@notchback]

How long does this entire process take for a bat?

[@awsczxfr]

DID BAT DIED?

[@Rabbishlover]

Amazing! Is there a way to disinfect the skeleton after being in the bug room?

[@TuberoseKisser]

those bugs are most likely already sterile(like hospital leeches & maggots) most of the time there isn't really anything to disinfect anyway.

[@Rabbishlover]

Ooh, that sounds really good. I thought perhaps they might naturally carry a harmful type of bacteria that would help in decomposition somehow, which would be good for the ecosystem, but could get you sick if you come into contact with it and touch your face or something. It's true; they wouldn't randomly take bugs out of nature that could carry potential parasites and diseases and use them in the medical field. I hadn't thought about it too much. Thanks.

[@TuberoseKisser]

Keena Ironweaver they don't carry bacteria to help decompose, they eat it through spitting stomach acid on it then eat it or they physically take chunks out.

[@CesarCordova]

Lysol

[@fernandoquintanilla1094]

Estoy por ver un poco de todo

[@AdrianaBarron1]

Very beautiful!

[@A_A_J.]

Very nice. Although I found the reconstitution of the skeleton much more informative than the first half, where the dissection was portrayed at a high enough speed that I couldn't actually differentiate the steps.

[@josephpaine6796]

You could have diaphonized it aswell, after dissection!

[@fullback118]

@notchback The process takes about 2-3 days for an animal of this size.

[@theburgerbrains]

That was fun to watch!

[@idreadFell365]

The anatomy of a bat skeleton looks like an exaggerated human skeleton.

[@DarkDemonNWK]

Mike!!!

[@dalienrivera6093]

awesome man I would like it to see it glued with arm extended perfectly thats me but pro

[@jackiegoldstein7835]

Wow

[@wonsz]

I wish I could have work like this!

[@Sspicy_Strawberry]

Un poco de todo:3

[@FireHalk06]

Vine de un poco de todo

[@fembeltran4273]

The poor bat it's a baby bat

[@suleymanerdem6601]

People says evolotion is not real. Bro look at this video and view this anatomy. This skeletons is looks like a human skeletons. Evolotion is real. Everybody will understand this subject a one day. Religions says Adam is the first human in the world. Thats not true because evolotion is real.

[@janisrozenbaums393]

Wery beutifull aim made identic coppy bat skeleton on tree thikness and sizes close jours. Aim cut bat skeleton vith hand compozute tree saw and not broken any bone and glue on black.

[@jackiegoldstein7835]

100 % cool

[@weaponlover32]

thats pretty sweet.

[@drsuperhero]

What kind of glue do you use?

[@umecologyandevolutionarybi8047]

We're sorry, we don't know for sure at this time what glue was used but our mammal collection manager speculated it could have been Elmer's (really). Thanks for your interest.

[@fullback118]

I can confirm that it is regular old Elmer's glue. I know this is a late reply, but I wanted to confirm for anyone reading your question! (I'm the guy in the video)