Lynx and bobcat skulls compared

[Okanagan]

Just got these back from beetle cleaning.  Surprising to me, the bobcat skull, on the right above, is bigger than the lynx.  The bone cleaning man said that the bobcat is an old one and that the lynx is a young animal, a young adult not too long past juvenile.  Also, the bobcat is a male and the lynx is a female.  The crest bone toward the back of the bobcat's skull is much taller than the same bone on the lynx, and its skirt bone around the back of its skull is wider.  The bone man said that is an indicator of a much older cat.  This bobcat was not quite as big as a 34 pounder that I had gotten earlier, but close to that weight though I did not weigh it.  I guessed the lynx at under 30 pounds, closer to 25, and I suspect that its long legs may have led me to guess too high.  Wish that I had weighed it.

Before and after:  Close up photo of each cat's teeth below, taken before any skinning.  Lynx first, with blue glove holding the head.  Bobcat pic is below the lynx.







An anomaly of interest to an oddball like me is that the bobcat had a tooth missing from birth.  It does not even have a tooth socket where the tooth would go, but is solid bone there.  I probably would not have noticed had not the bone man pointed it out.  He was fascinated that the cat had a birth defect in the number of its teeth.  In the pics below, can you spot the tooth that isn't there?

[Hawks Feather]

Nice looking skulls.  Those beetles really do a nice job.

Jerry

[FinsnFur]

Wow, those turned out beautiful! Interesting tooth ordeal. So whats your plan with them from here?

[Okanagan]

Wow, those turned out beautiful! Interesting tooth ordeal. So whats your plan with them from here?

Plan?  Keep them in my home office, probably on top of a bookcase.  My wife has begun to call it a cave.   Keep them out of my wife's sight.  I had thought to put them on the mantle in the living room but she set her foot down about having them anywhere she will ever lay eyes on them, not in her house.  She will have to avert her eyes when she comes down to visit me.   She has not seen them yet, but she guessed today what was in the box.  She knew I got a phone call yesterday and then drove to an isolated backroad convenience store parking lot to meet a stranger, hand him some cash and take a small unmarked cardboard box from him.

[FinsnFur]

LOL! the hand off uh? 
Well they turned out awesome. If you decide to seal them, which my personal opinion is they should be, do some research because some sealers will turn them yellow in time.

[Okanagan]

LOL! the hand off uh? 
Well they turned out awesome. If you decide to seal them, which my personal opinion is they should be, do some research because some sealers will turn them yellow in time.

Thanks.  I thought they would come sealed, and want to seal them.  Will ask around.  If you know which sealer to use, let me know.

[nastygunz]

 Very interesting!

[Hawks Feather]

I think that you should tell your wife that since the can't be displayed the way that you want them to be that you will just hide them around the house.  Then give her a few ideas of places to start looking. 

For what it is worth and while this sounds like a really great idea there is no way that I would ever consider it.   


Jerry

[Dave]

Wow they look great.  Pretty neat facts on the age and shapes of their skulls, too

[riverboss]

Looks really good! I'm getting ready to start on my bobcat skull and I have a lot of decisions to make.
I hope it comes out as good as yours did.
If you don't mind me asking how much does a taxidermist charge for the beetle work?

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[Hawks Feather]

If you don't mind me asking how much does a taxidermist charge for the beetle work?

Around here it became extremely expensive.  Under the prior president's guidance they formed the Black Beetles Matter movement and also have claimed the being forced to work without pay was unfair.  The ACLU backed their lawsuit so they now each get $15.00 per hour and anything over an eight hour eat is time and a half.  Multiply that by the number of beetles and you can understand the high cost.   

Jerry

[Okanagan]

Looks really good! I'm getting ready to start on my bobcat skull and I have a lot of decisions to make.
I hope it comes out as good as yours did.
If you don't mind me asking how much does a taxidermist charge for the beetle work?

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I paid $75 per skull Canadian, which is about 37 cents in US dollars.  (pitw, please forgive me.)  Actually, that is close to $55 US or a little more.  A few years ago I got a quote from a fellow in WA State about beetle cleaning a skull and he wanted $60 for a bobcat at that time.  These prices are from people who have a beetle cleaning operation on the side, rather than taxidermist prices.

The fellow who did these two above is a trapper who does skull and bone cleaning on the side.  I thought he did a good job, though I expected that they would be sealed.  Never met him in person till I picked them up and I had never thought to ask about sealing them.   I gave the skulls to him frozen, delivered by a  friend, and it took about a year.  The beetles clean the bone, then it is degreased and put in a weak peroxide solution, weaker than most use he told me, which takes longer to bleach the bone white but preserves the tissue paper thin sinus bones. 

My grandsons got some dermisted beetles from a friend but keeping them alive and happy is tricky since the bugs joined Black Beetles Matter and get minimum wage.  The beetles went on strike and all died during the winter.

[FinsnFur]

Jerry lol

Okanagan, I cant make a recommendation being out of that scene for so long, but you'll find some good info on it at Taxidermy.net for starters.
Here's one link to start http://www.taxidermy.net/forum/index.php/topic,2213.0.html

[riverboss]

Thanks!


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