Oryx Eye

[Major]

Hope this can help someone!

[outwoods taxidermy]

great shot of the eye''

[John Bellucci]

It's the eye of the dead!  Not much use when trying to recreate a live look!

John.

[Bill Yox]

Funny I was just about to comment on how good it still looked for being dead, the membrane stayed in place, etc...

[John Bellucci]

Yeah!  And how lifelike it is, that the muscles of the front of the eye are so relaxed allowing the Nictiataing membrane to be exposed like it is, and how natural it is to have all that hair sticking to the eyeball!  And the eyelid shape is way off for a live animal.  It's not correct.  It is a dead eye.  "A black eye, like a doll's eye."  C'mon Yox, I expected better from you!

John.

[James Marsico]

Funny I was just about to comment on how good it still looked for being dead, the membrane stayed in place, etc...

I agree.

[Bill Yox]

Damn, he got me on the hair on the eye surface.              

[Major]

Alright alright, you caught me!!!!  here's some live ones you weanies!!    Hope these help.  I have spent a lot of time studying these critters. 

[Major]

Mas ojos...

[John Bellucci]

Thank you, Major ... Thank You!

I'm sure everyone will notice the differences now between what is the eye of the living and the eye of a dead specimen.

Please allow me to explain.  Upon impact of the bullet, or arrow – whatever means the ends the animal's life – and death begins to ensue, there are major (no pun intended here, I promise) changes that begin immediately. 

As the life begins to ebb out of the animal, and its pulse begins to slow, the blood pressure decreases.  As the blood pressure decreases – pressure being the key word here – all of the features of the animal begin to change. 

This is especially noticeable in the "soft" parts of the animal.  The eyes and their surrounding structure, the nose pad and nostril interior, as well as the lips, all loose their plumpness. 

No matter what we may do to "replump" or "re-inflate" these features, we mere mortal humans cannot restore the life plumpness to these parts. 

To the untrained eye – and this is not a slam against anyone here – these restorative methods may look good.  But to those who have made it a point to study the living – yes, as closely as I have – these methods are for naught.

The eye itself is filled with a viscous fluid that is maintained by the capillaries that run through the back of the eye.  The eye "globe" itself is maintained – "in the round" – by the blood that courses through its blood vessels.  The eyeball is held in its eye orbit of the skull in its proper position – cushioned – by the surrounding tissues that are supplied with blood coursing through its blood vessels.

Once the blood flow ... the pressure ... is diminished by the onset of death, all these features begin a drastic change.  These changes begin to occur within seconds of this life altering step known as death.  And there is nothing we can do to alter those changes.  We cannot replenish the pulse of the dying or dead animal  That ... and only that ... is the way life is restored to the animal that is "in the raw" as it were.  Not even if we get to the animal "within minutes" ... that is "minutes" too late.

The major change in the eyes is a reduction in the overall size, or dimensions, of the globe itself.  This affects the outward shape and appearance of the part that we see ... the iris, which has a great number of blood vessels.  Once this shape begins to change, then the lay of the upper and lower eyelids change, and they no longer lay properly along the external shape of the iris.

Compare the iris in the photo of the dead Oryx to the iris seen in the photos of the live animal.  Notice the smooth, moist appearance of the live eye, as opposed to the dry, wavy appearance of the dead eye that has already begun to shrink, and reduce its roundness.

The rear edge – the thickest portion of the lower lid – begins to droop away from the eye.  The arch of the upper eyelid – the thickest portion of the upper lid – collapses as there is no longer the forward convexion of the eye for it to lay against. 

Not only that, but the Conjunctiva – the inner lining of both the upper and lower eyelids – no longer has a full pulse, or any pulse, and so its plumpness is now compromised, flattening the features of the live and vibrant eyelids.  In life, this soft pink tissue lining the undersides of the eyelids and covering the third eyelid is rich in lymph tissue and blood supply.

Forward of the eyes the structure of the Caruncula lacrymalis relaxes, releasing its control over the Nictitating Membrane, allowing it to unfurl over the front of the eye.  The muscles of the "channel" – as Ron likes to call it – ahead of the eye – the upper lateral cartilage – also relax, and this widens most unnaturally as the animal lies dying, and remains "opened" upon death.

Behind the eyeball, holding it in place is a series of muscles called the Extraocular Muscles.  These coordinate the movement of the eye in all directions.  They are controlled by the cranial nerves.  Here too, once the animal looses its pulse, these muscles loose their control, causing the eye to rotate in a position not seen in the living animal.  Once rotated out of the normal position as seen in the live animal, it is no longer a viable source of reference.

Remember, as Taxidermists, we are Wildlife Artists.  And unless you are producing a dead game piece, we are obligated to restore an animal to as lifelike an appearance as possible.  You cannot do that using photos of the dead – no matter how clear or close the image – to represent the living.

John.

[joeym]

Great reference shots!   Thanks

[James Marsico]

 Thanks for the live photos Major I saved them all. The point was made that the dead eye photo still  good "for being dead". Nothing worse in my mind than a condesending attitude.

[John Bellucci]

Thanks for the live photos Major I saved them all. The point was made that the dead eye photo still  good "for being dead". Nothing worse in my mind than a condesending attitude.

Really!  Nothing worse in my mind than someone who is not willing to learn, and/ or admit when they're wrong!  And since when is educating condesending?  If you want to remain ignorant, that's up to you, and I don't care how long it's served you to be so.  Get over yourself.  There are those here that are more than willing to expand their minds and their knowledge!  For some reason you don't like me ... and that's fine.  I'll return the disservice.  But don't go bitching every time I try to help people understand the animals or their parts, that make up our field.

John.

[James Marsico]

"C'mon Yox, I expected better from you! "that sir  is a condesending statement and so is the above post. I am still learning and hope to only stop the day I die. "Lord" Rusty. Get over yourself.

[Major]

That was a good description of the end of an animal's life LR!  I have a few more good gemsbok photos if anyone would like some.  They are pretty hard to photograph over here.  They get more and more skiddish every day.  The only ones we can photograph are the oryx off the White Sands Missile Range, which are far and few between......