Excerpt from Random Notes on Natural History, Vol. 2
With the present number we enter upon Vol. II. Of our magazine. Aware of some deficiencies in the issue of the past year, we shall, with greater experience, endeavor to rectify them in future, and, taking great care that the material presented shall be correct, we think our magazine will be valuable beyond the very moderate price of subscription. It contains the only reports ever published upon the mollusca and reptilian of Rhode Island, certainly valuable to amateurs and students in either of those branches, and a checking-list of the cyclostomacea of the world, beside which we aim to present papers and reports on other subjects, in a manner as popular as is consistent with scientific accuracy.
To those who have encouraged us by their subscriptions, we beg to extend our thanks.
A New Wrinkle in Taxidermy.
Wishing to turn a mounted bird into a skin and having but a limited time to devote to the task, I tried an experiment. Taking a tunnel and inserting the pointed end in the stuffing between the edges of the skin on the abdomen, I poured in a quantity of hot water (nearly boiling hot) taking care to regulate the injection so that it should be rather slowly absorbed by the stuffing, and holding the bird at various angles, that every portion of the interior might become soaked. The effect was magical; the skin quickly relaxed, and within fifteen minutes I could bend the neck and make other required changes without any risk of a break.
My first experiment was with a gull; afterward I tried other birds, both large and small, with equal success. I found also that the plan worked equally well with skins which had been overstuffed or otherwise badly made. In a very few minutes they would become nearly as tractable as when freshly taken from the birds, and much more so than I have ever succeeded in making them by the use of a damping-box. The only difficulty experienced was that the water, especially if turned in too fast, would escape through shot holes and other rents in the skin, thus wetting the plumage in places. Of course after the required improvements or changes have been made the stuffing is so thoroughly saturated that the skin must be placed in a very warm place to dry. I dried mine most successfully by placing them on a furnace register and leaving them exposed to the full blast of heat for several days.
This insect has been reported by a number of naturalists as being extremely rare in the New England States, but, like many others, it is quite common in localities. The Cermatia is very easily distinguished from other Myriapods by its long legs and extremely long entenn?, the latter being longer than the body. In the adult specimens, the body is about an inch in length, the legs (except the hind ones) ? of an inch, while the hind ones are in the neighborhood of 2 inches, the total length from tip of antenn? to tip of hind legs being about 4? inches.
The body is of a greenish-brown color, striped with green, and the legs have three green bands around them.
It is an insect that loves the shade in the day-time, and should one by any means be forced into a place where a ray of sunlight can strike it, it will scurry back into as dark a shadow as it can find.
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