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From: wwf@oz.plymouth.edu (Dr. Wavell Fogleman)
Newsgroups: rec.birds
Subject: Re: How do I preserve the skeleton of a dead bird?
Message-ID: <1991Jan10.150219.8638@oz.plymouth.edu>
Date: 10 Jan 91 15:02:19 GMT
References: <8483@pbhyf.PacBell.COM>
Reply-To: wwf@oz.plymouth.edu (Dr. Wavell Fogleman)
Distribution: usa
Organization: Plymouth State College - Plymouth, N.H.
Lines: 12

Please be advised that it is ILLEGAL to possess any nongame bird, dead
or alive, or its parts or nests or eggs without proper federal [and
in most cases state] permit.  This is to insure compliance with the 
international [North American] Migratory Bird Act designed to keep 
people from using birds as decorations, etc.  Since it is not possible
to distinguish from a bird body [or skeleton] taken from a bird found
dead and one taken from a bird killed for the purpose, the law makes
ANY possesion illegal.

Aside from the legal aspects, most biologists would probably employ 
leather beatles to clean the corpse remains from the bones.  Then you have 
problem of reassembling them!