BONELUST BLOG QUICK LINKS - Answers For Your Bone Processing Questions Are Here

Apologies in advance! I get countless messages in many online locations daily about bone processing, bone ID, etc. Please try to find your answers in these links before messaging me. If you still have questions you are welcome to ask but I may not reply for a while.

Sorry guys, I'm a full time self employed bone artist and simply do not have the time to always get back to your questions in a timely fashion. Especially when it is a time where I have to really focus on something like holiday sales. Which start for me in October. Or an art show or convention that could be any time of the year.

Please take note of the SEARCH THIS BLOG field to the right here where you can quickly search for answers in my many posts rather than having to look for it one at a time. 

FOR EVERYONE WITH QUESTIONS ABOUT PROCESSING BIRDS: 

I really hardly ever post anything anywhere in general about birds because of legal issues. Most birds you're going to come across in US/Canada are illegal to have any part of dead or alive because they are Migratory Bird Treaty Act protected species. If you were to macerate most birds you're likely going to end up with nothing but a stinky pile of mush. To process birds, rodents & small reptiles/amphibians you can't really macerate like larger medium sized animals. You literally have to carefully remove the feathers, skin & muscle with surgical tools, tweezers & scissors as best you can. I rarely do this myself because it is so tedious. If it is mummified it may be even harder to accomplish. Or you can soak a while in water & if you're lucky you can carefully peel away the skin from the bones & just hope that most of the muscle was already eaten away by carrion insects. I'll have to make a longer blog post about this sometime for sure. But for now there's this one:

BONELUST Q&A: "How do I get the bones from this small animal?"

A LITTLE MORE ABOUT BIRD REMAINS:

Most of the birds protected by the MBTA are not endangered. They are very common and abundant. But that was not the case when the MBTA was created back in 1918. Many common birds were being wiped out into extinction from people hunting them and collecting them & their eggs/nests for their collections. And people using the feathers in fashion. That's the misconception that most people don't understand now. The species that are alive now were saved from extinction by the MBTA. That's why they are so common and abundant now.

It is illegal in US, Canada, Mexico, Russia and Japan to even possess bird remains of species listed on the MBTA. We can not have or sell birds, feathers, bones, eggs, or even nests from anything on that protected list. Likewise, you could be fined up to $15,000 and/or do jail time for having/selling them. So be careful!

Your legal common bird options are - European Starling (Sturnus vulgaris), Feral Pigeon (Columba livia domestica), House Sparrow (Passer domesticus), chickens and other domesticated birds and birds like quail, grouse and pheasants. But some of those game birds you still need permits to hunt and can not be sold.

I want to point out as well that there are MANY pigeon/dove species that ARE protected species and many people have a misconception that they are not. Only Feral Pigeons are OK to have. Also, people often mention that crows are hunted and OK to have. Not that simple. You must have a permit to hunt where they are permitted to hunt and do so in season. Also, hunted crows can not be sold, they can only be gifted. Info about Regulations For Crows.

List of species covered by the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA)

Final List of Bird Species to Which the Migratory Bird Treaty Act Does Not Apply - Note though that it is somewhat out of date - file orig dated 2005, PDF from 2008. Could be changes since then.

Tons More Animal Parts Laws Can Be Found Here. Here in the US you can quickly look up info on your exact state at the link above which is especially helpful with some laws being so varied from state to state.

Here is a list of my most frequented blog posts and topics related to the questions I get for quicker reference to find your answers.

TIPS FOR BEGINNER BONE COLLECTORS:

BONELUST BONE PROCESSING Q&A: I want to start collecting bones/animal remains but I'm concerned about disease.

Most Important Thing For a Bone Collector? Patience. 

Starting Over, Learning Anew

Bone Collectors Are Not Sociopaths

BONELUST Q&A: "Can't you get leprosy from armadillos?

DEFLESHING WITH NATURAL DECOMP IN A BONE CAGE:

BONELUST Q&A: "Can I just leave animals to decompose in a bone cage & do nothing else?" 

BONE CLEANING WITH MACERATION:

BONELUST BONE PROCESSING Q&A: What should the remains look like to begin maceration?

The Mathematics Of Maceration - A HowTo Guide For The Patient 

BONELUST Q&A: "I've been macerating bones & they are now a strange color! Are they ruined?"

BONELUST Q&A: "What's this white stuff on my bones? How do I get rid of it?" 

WHITENING AND SANITIZING BONE:

Whitening Bone Using Hydrogen Peroxide NOT Chlorine Bleach

Bad Words: BOIL & BLEACH

WHAT'S WRONG WITH USING CHLORINE BLEACH ON BONE?

Bad Words: BOIL & BLEACH

WHAT'S WRONG WITH BOILING BONE?

BONELUST Q&A: "Why is it bad to boil bones? It is the way I was taught to clean them a long time ago."


Bad Words: BOIL & BLEACH

TROUBLE SHOOTING PROCESSING ISSUES - RED OR BLACK BONE, GRAVE WAX, MOLD, ALGAE, & MOSS GROWTH ON BONE:

BONELUST Q&A: "What's this white stuff on my bones? How do I get rid of it?" 

BONELUST Q&A: "I've been macerating bones & they are now a strange color! Are they ruined?"

Whitening Bone Using Hydrogen Peroxide NOT Chlorine Bleach

DEGREASING BONE:

BONELUST Q&A: "How will I know if a skull needs degreasing, I'm not sure what it even looks like?"

HOW DO I PUT MANDIBLES TOGETHER & TEETH BACK IN:

BONELUST Q&A: "The teeth fell out of my skull! Did I do something wrong? How do I fix it?"

BONELUST Q&A: "How do I put mandibles back together & teeth in?"

USING INSECTS FOR BONE PROCESSING:

"Stick it on an ant pile!"

BONELUST Q&A: "Do you use dermestid beetles?"

WHO AM I? WHAT'S ETHICAL BONE ARTIST MEAN TO ME?:

Meet Jana Miller: Founder & Artist of Bone Lust

BONELUST Q&A: What do you mean when you say you’re an ethical bone artist?

BONELUST BONE ART SHOP Q&A: Who is your animal bone supplier?

Jana Miller Bone Lust Interview on Postal Treats

Bone Collecting from the Beginning

BONELUST Q&A: "I've been macerating bones & they are now a strange color! Are they ruined?"

Maceration is the process of purification to remove the remaining flesh from bone. It is the easiest & least expensive way to do this while still leaving bones in good condition. Note that this process is typically best for animals larger than a rat. Smaller bones can turn to mush during maceration as they themselves start to break down.

To macerate you take your animal remains that have very minimal flesh on them (never a whole animal!), add them to a plastic container & fill with plain tap water then replace the tight fitted lid. The lid is important because you don't want insect larvae in your maceration water only the bacteria that will grow and eat away the flesh. You also don't want to leave it out in the rain without a lid or you'll get algae growing. Insect larvae & algae with both start to break down and possibly even stain the bone.

The more flesh on the remains the longer this process will take. Somewhere around 2 weeks the bones should be coated with a film that's pink, red, rust, brown or black. That's normal & means the bacteria is working to remove the flesh. The bacteria may however be dead now though so time to change the water if still fleshy and start the process again, or time to start peroxide bath if done. Pour out only half on the nasty water and add fresh water to fill the rest of the container if the maceration is not done yet.

These deer bones were covered with a bright red film because they were left for too long in the maceration process, on accident. They were completely flesh free though. Thankfully I just hosed the film right off then started the peroxide step to get rid of the awful smell.

The odd colored film you see on your bones is a residue of the bacteria or the bacteria itself coating the bone. It does this when the water runs out of oxygen for the bacteria to survive. Referred to as the bacteria going anaerobic. This anaerobic bacteria in maceration replaces the microbes that were doing the maceration work of defleshing the bones. And therefore the maceration process has come to a halt.

It can be caused by too many microbes using up all of the oxygen in the water or it can be from an oily film on top of the water that keeps oxygen from entering the water. Some ways to prevent this are - larger quantities of water, changing the water or a bubbler. It commonly happens to marine mammal remains during maceration because of the high oil content in their bones rising to the top of the water.

This is a potbelly pig skull that started off lightly mummified that soaked undisturbed for 2 weeks. The maceration water was still fairly clear and yet the skull was turning black. I've found that when there is little flesh to work with or very old flesh this can happen. Sometimes the black film easily hoses off or goes away once the bone dries. In this case though it took a peroxide bath to remove the black coloration. 

Raccoon bone that was pulled out of maceration. It was dropped into peroxide and pulled out an hour later to show how fast the peroxide can get rid of the staining. It can in most cases happen instantly.

"Before" of diamondback rattlesnake bones straight out of maceration.

"After" of same diamondback rattlesnake bones after a peroxide bath.

The maceration water needs to be kept at a certain temp to work. It will not work in the Winter in most locations because it is too cold for the bacteria to survive. It will also die off if it gets too hot in warmer months. For exact temperatures & more extensive info about this see this blogspot blog.

Good luck!

BONELUST Q&A: "What's this white stuff on my bones? How do I get rid of it?"

What you are seeing here on this rabbit skull is called adipocere AKA corpse wax, grave wax or mortuary wax. It is a crumbly, waxy, water-insoluble material consisting mostly of saturated fatty acids.  



Adipocere is the product of a chemical reaction in which fats react with water and hydrogen in the presence of bacterial enzymes, breaking down into fatty acids and soaps. Adipocere is resistant to bacteria and can protect a corpse, slowing further decomposition. The transformation of fats into adipocere occurs best in an environment that has an absence of oxygen and high levels of moisture. Adipocere formation begins within a month of death, and, in the absence of air, it can persist for centuries.

It is not uncommon for adipocere to be found on bones. Either found in a natural setting or while being processed. I've found that the best time to remove it is either A) when the bones are freshly out of maceration or peroxide and you use a toothbrush to literally brush the adipocere off while submerged in water or B) After the bones have been degreased, had a peroxide bath and then dried. The adipocere become less waxy and more flaky and you can more easily remove it with your fingernail or again, with a toothbrush. This time dry.

Be careful how much force you use on a bone with a brush or fingernail. This rabbit skull for example is going to be a real challenge for me to remove the adipocere as it is a very thin/fragile skull.  

BONELUST Q&A: "The teeth fell out of my skull! Did I do something wrong? How do I fix it?"

It is absolutely normal for some of the teeth to fall out of a skull you are processing. The gums that once held them in place are now gone. It is also normal for the mandible to split into two pieces in many animals, like this coyote.



Take photos of the skull/head with teeth in place before starting to clean it if you think you will have trouble putting them back into the correct place.



Pictured above is what you do NOT want to do! I received this absolutely glue saturated opossum skull from someone I though would know better. Second photo shows the same glue (white) before I brushed it off with a toothbrush, after I soaked the whole skull in water to remove the glue. Not all glues will come off in water but I suggest that as your first try.

Followup with a peroxide bath overnight. Then dry. Next you put the teeth back into place one by one with a very small amount of white school glue on each root before inserting into the skull. Wipe off any excess glue or it will be shiny on your skull. Let dry upside down so the teeth stay in place.

You put the mandibles back together with a small about of white school glue as well. They will not stay in place while drying without some help. I have a blog post already on how to reattach a mandible. 



Some animal skulls you can flip over and the freshly lightly glued mandible just stays nicely in place while drying. Also, by doing it that way you're sure you have them glued together at the right angle.

BONELUST Q&A: "Can I just leave animals to decompose in a bone cage & do nothing else?"

I am frequently asked - "Can I just leave animals to decompose in a bone cage & do nothing else?"
No, it is only one of the first steps in my bone processing techniques. There have been some misconceptions about how bone cages are used in my processing. There are several reasons you don't want to just leave an animal carcass in a bone cage for the months or even years it could take for nature to clean it for you.

Reasons Not to Leave Bones in a Bone Cage:

Lichen, moss, mold, algae etc can start to grow into the bones. Sometimes you can't get this plant life out of the bone. Or the green stain off.



Fallen leaves will eventually stain & decay the bones too. Also, you greatly chance getting rust on your bones which I've yet to find a fix for in over 30 years. So yes, rust stains are permanent in bone. Even though I put screen down over the metal wire cage it can still ruin the bone if left too long.

Note the screen under the squirrel to catch tiny teeth/bones and keep it from rusting.

Pictured below are diamondback rattlesnake vertebrae & ribs I just removed from my bone cage today. I removed as much excess skin that remained then started them with the maceration process.

Normally my bone cages are used simply to let the wild carrion insects deflesh the animal remains for me. Then I move the bones onto the maceration step to further clean them of flesh, skin, ligaments, cartilage & such. Then degrease if needed and last step is the sanitizing & whitening hydrogen peroxide bath.

So in summary, if you left an animal carcass in a bone cage for the months or even years it could take for nature to fully clean it for you... you would likely end up with very weathered and flaky bone, with rusty undersides and plant growth.