What to Do with Unwanted Taxidermy

By Dr. Robert C. Jadin, Curator of Ornithology in the Museum of Natural History and Lecturer in the Department of Biology at the University of Wisconsin Stevens Point, Stevens Point, WI

Museum specimens preserved, positioned, and arranged in metal cabinets for long-term storage at the UWSP Ornithology Collection.

As WWA members know, waterfowl are amazingly beautiful animals that, when encountered in the wild, can elicit emotions from calmness and awe to anticipation and exhilaration. Including waterfowl in your home décor can greatly improve the ambiance of a room while extracting some of those remembered sensations. Sculptures or paintings that reveal the striking colors and natural behaviors of birds excite our senses and reveal the biophilia that we all share. Waterfowl are part of what makes the environment so alluring and appealing.

However, perhaps even more impactful and special than a glossy print or even a duck stamp are taxidermized mounts from personally harvested ducks. These mounts can provoke a recollection of not only the duck itself but allow the hunter to reminisce other aspects of the event. The morning scenery of the wetland, the crisp, cool breeze blowing cattails, the friends and family that joined in the hunt, the feel and weight of an old shotgun, and the faithful and youthful dog that retrieved the bird from the wavy water. These mounts are more than just attractive, quaint items on a mantel but rather are part of the commemorations of our life’s experiences with nature.

But what do we do if we must dispose of a taxidermy? Perhaps you are someone who has collected too many over the years, run out of space for displaying your mounts, inherited a mount that you cannot keep, or have no one interested to pass them down to. There are many reasons for needing to remove your old mounts but how do you legally discard one once you have made that decision?

Mounts stored in glass cabinets in a UWSP classroom where ornithology is taught. Both photographs taken by RCJ

One option may be to donate a taxidermy. This can be tricky depending on the type of institution to which you are considering donating. Museums and Natural History Collections are mainly interested in specimens that have been preserved a specific way that allow for the anatomy to be measured and compared in standardized ways (Figure 1A). This contrasts with educational institutions that have birds in more natural positions for teaching diagnostic features and basic ecology (Figure 1B). The interest in your donation may depend on the species of bird and quality of your mount. For example, most university biology programs and state parks likely have mallards already in their teaching collections but a good Eider or Scoter may be mission from their collection and something they would be interested in.

When donating, it is important to let the institution know the history of the bird as this may be important in the future. Having a record of who harvested the bird and where it was provides additional value to the mount. It is also important to know how the mount was preserved as some may have dangerous chemicals (e.g. arsenic) that need to be documented for the health and safety of the people at the institution. Finally, many institutions have donation guidelines and protocols that must be met and forms that must be filed so communicate with them prior to donating your mounts.

If you do have mounts to donate, below are a few institutions that may be interested in accepting them. Beyond these particular locations, other similar establishments may be worth exploring as well.

State Wildlife Areas:

State Parks:

State Forests:

School Forests:

Other organizations that may be interested: 

Non-profit nature centers: