There are recognizable differences in these three species of wigeons found mainly different regions of the world. The one physical trait that remains similar is the bill color of the three, and both the males and females of the three species have this common trait. Another interesting fact is that the rusty-headed Eurasian wigeon turns up as a rarity in flocks of...

One day I was presented with a challenge to mount a lifesize elephant which could be taken apart, so it would not be required to be permanently displayed. The elephant was to be transported down a hallway 70 inches wide and 80 inches tall. The request by the director of the Monte L. Bean Life Science Museum at Brigham Young University set in motion this article. While...

The hunter did a double-take—was it really what he thought it was? In plain sight were two long-dead skulls of two whitetail bucks, locked forever, from a battle old as time. The hunter, Wes Archer, one of my long-time clients, told me of his find. I told him that many years ago I had mounted a pair like that with a lot of difficulty. Ten years passed. Wes took the...

A bluegill probably represents a fisherman’s first fish over other species of freshwater fish. They are fun to catch, great to eat, and make very attractive mounts. When I was building my taxidermy clientele back in the early 1960s and 1970s, I completed three stringer mounts of bluegills, with a few other members of the sunfish family added in. They were displayed...