Be aware that formalin slowly dissolve the shell! If you plan to store thin
shells for a longer time (months, years) in formalin you may add some chalky
substance to the container. 70-80% isopropanol works well for the
prservation of the animal but it will penetrate the tissue not so fast as
ethanol. For big or very small specimen 70% ethanol would be the first
choice.
Bernd Sahlmann
from Munich
Scaphopod homepage:
www.berndsahlmann.de
----- Original Message -----
From: "Paul Callomon" <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Thursday, June 30, 2005 10:47 PM
Subject: Re: formalin
> Ethanol is preferred as a storage medium in systematic collections as it
> preserves DNA well. Formaldehyde in any concentration more or less trashes
> DNA; fragments can be recovered, but it's really hard. If you are planning
> on donating specimens to a research institute or museum, most places
> prefer ethanol-preserved material.
> Formalin, on the other hand, makes a nice chewy specimen for anatomical
> work. Ethanol tends to firm things up too much.
>
> PC.
>
> Paul Callomon
> Collections Manager
> Malacology, Invertebrate Paleontology and General Invertebrates
> Department of Malacology
> Academy of Natural Sciences
> 1900 Parkway, Philadelphia PA 19103-1195, USA
> Tel 215-405-5096
> Fax 215-299-1170
> Secretary, American Malacological Society
> On the web at http://erato.acnatsci.org/ams/
>
>
>>>> [log in to unmask] 06/27/05 12:20PM >>>
> I recall using ethanol to store specimens rather than formalin because
> its much less toxic. Of course, it will also drain color over time. But
> it should be readily and cheaply available =)
>
> Cheers,
> Nicholas Johnson
>
> The University of Chicago
> Committee on Evolutionary Biology
>
> On Mon, 27 Jun 2005, James Cheshire wrote:
>
>> Hey everyone,
>> I'd like to ask if anyone knows where I can get formalin; I need it
>> for fixing specimens of costoanachis.
>>
>> Thanks,
>> James
>>
>> --
>> James M. Cheshire (two h's in the surname, thank you)
>> Granville, Ohio, USA; minimum winter temp. -10 F / -23 C
>> ---------------------
>> Oh, they say she died one winter, when there came a killing frost
>>
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