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Why would one of the Nation's top natural history conservators, Catharine Hawks, of George Washington University, Washington D.C., come to the Museum to repair an ostrich?

The ostrich was donated to the Museum in 1886 by William Temple Hornaday. The bird is important because of Hornaday's role in the history of the conservation movement and museum exhibit techniques. The DNA that is still preserved in the specimen also provides an invaluable window into the genetic diversity of the species when it still thrived in the wild. The Museum is fortunate to have in its collection more than 100 exotic birds and mammals, all collected and donated by Hornaday.

Staff, students, and volunteers profited from the opportunity to learn from a professional currently working in the field.

Museum Studies students finish the restoration effort. Photos