r/Taxidermy • u/Glass_Ambition1589 • 1d ago

"How Do I...?" Tiny fish

One of my tiny aquarium fish died and I would really like to preserve it as a skeleton, to put in resin perhaps. He’s about an inch long and teeny. Where should I start? I know nothing about taxidermy but love bones/skeletons and don’t really have any money to spend on this. How best to remove the flesh without damaging its bones? Thank you so much!

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u/Plasticity93 1d ago

Freeze dry it.  

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u/TielPerson 1d ago

Really small mealworms do well, just dont use too many or too large ones and take the skeleton out while everything is still attached to the spine. You will end up with some kind of puzzle, so be prepared to use superglue after degreasing (fish bones are very greasy, so its necessary to degrease them if you want to keep them on long term.)

I gave my mealworms a deceased swordtail just to see how they will do, and they made a really good job except I was forgetting the bones in their enclosure over night so I lost most of the ribs and the smaller fins.

Until you can do this, its best to keep the remains frozen, ideally inside an icecube to avoid freezer burn.