Steps On How To Embed A Reptile, an Amphibian, or a Fish.

As in the case with insects, water moisture inside of your specimen is your worst enemy. You cannot dry these kinds of species as you dry an insect without doing a lot of damage to your specimen. For example for lizard specimens.

First, soak the dead lizard real good in alcohol. Let it soak for over 48 hours or so and inject alcohol through a hyperdermic needle into each of it's shoulders and hips. Take an eye dropper and force the liquid down it's throat.

Remove the specimen from the soaking jar, place it on a paper towel, and leave it overnight to drain real good. The next day you are ready to embed it.

The mold is like a large bowl. Apply the mold release real good to the mold. Then measure out the plastic resin, mix it with the hardener, and pour the base layer. If you want the base layer clear and want others to be able to look at the belly of the lizard.

Next pour a thin layer of liquid plasic on top of the base layer, insert the lizard inside of the mold and curl his tail around so no part of it's tail is touching any part of the mold. I work out any air bubbles that may be around the bottom of the lizard. Then I give it a couple of hours to set up. Up to this point only the bottom part of the lizard and his feet are touching any of the plastic resin. Now the resin is pretty firm and I can be assured that the lizard is not going to float around or drift in any more of the resin that I pour.

One secret here is to try to reduce the amount of heat that the hardening plastic is giving off. The best way to do this is to pour thin layers at a time. Say, only 1/8 inch thick at a time. Remember that too much heat all at once will affect the moisture content inside of the specimen. This heat will affect the liquid alcohol in the specimen in nearly the same way that it would have affected the water moisture in the specimen if you had not treated it. Just keep on pouring one thin layer after another with about 4 hours or so in between the pouring of each layer. Then finish covering your specimen with resin. Let the entire work dry for about 2 full days or so.

If you get silvering then you know you did something wrong. Try it again on another specimen using the trial and error method until you get a good specimen without silvering. Keep notes if you have to on each of your experiments until you find the way that works best for you.

Kraig J. Rice. 2005. Plastic Embedding As A Hobby.