3D ANATOMY STUDIES

3 - Yellow Throated Warbler

Abigail Black 11/15/2023
October 20, 2022I found this little guy dead on the sidewalk shortly after sundown. From the angle of the head, I'm assuming it flew headfirst into a window and broke its neck on impact. I had my handy dandy grocery bag, so I bundled up the bird and took it home. Into the box it went!
November 3So, this was the first feathered animal I had decomposing, so I wasn't sure what to expect. That feathers do not decompose nicely was not entirely surprising. I do own chickens. Their feathers seem to linger forever, slowly degrading into a ragged mess.
December 12I never saw any flies or larvae, but the bones were already coming to light and the skull was bare.
March 28, 2023Birds do not decompose nicely. The flesh kinda liquifies into this jelly stuff and stays there. No bugs came to visit, as far as I'm aware.
August ???Again, forgot to take pictures. I harvested any bones I could find, which I'm sure wasn't all of them but I did get the main ones like the arms, legs, pelvis, vertebrae, and skull. I bathed them in full hydrogen peroxide because it's still reasonably inexpensive and I didn't need much to cover the bones. A week or so later, I ended up not needing the toothbrush because any remaining flesh dissolved in the solution. The bones spent a few weeks in the sun in a little aluminum cup, which more exposure than they needed but I was on vacation. Then I put a lid on the cup and put the bird on the shelf.

Currently incomplete.