C 1.0
Preserved vertebrates
Frogs, fetal pigs, rats, cats, mink, perch and sharks, plus the organ preparations that stand in for a whole animal when a whole animal is not what the lesson needs. Priced by species, size band and injection grade.
This is the largest group in the catalogue and the one where the grade matters most. The same species appears two or three times below, and those entries are not a discount ladder — they are different preparations for different lessons.
The question that decides it is whether anything has to be followed. A lesson that identifies organs and describes their positions needs a plain specimen, and a plain specimen is the right answer rather than the cheap one. A lesson that traces a vessel from the heart out to a limb and back needs the vessels filled, because in an uninjected specimen a collapsed vein is a grey line in grey tissue and thirty students will not find it.
Size bands are stated as measurements rather than as small, medium and large. What fits an 8″ × 12″ tray, and what a pair of students can work on together without one of them holding it steady the whole hour, is a length in inches.
Name these on the order
- Species and binomial
- Both Rana pipiens and Lithobates catesbeianus are “frog”, and a lesson built on one does not transfer cleanly to the other.
- Injection grade
- Plain, single, double or triple. Named on the order or chosen for you, and it moves the price more than anything else on this list.
- Size band
- A length in inches. Small enough for the tray, large enough for two students to share without a fight.
- Holding fluid
- Formalin-fixed or formalin-free. Decides what the room has to be ventilated for and what a district will approve.
- Pack size
- Each, pack of ten, or case. Preserved material keeps, so the larger break is usually the right one.
All of them appear on your written quotation before a purchase order is raised. See ordering.
C 1.1 Prices
Published prices
Catalogue figures for this group, reviewed September 2026. The whole catalogue is priced on one page if you would rather compare groups — see prices.
| Specimen | Size | Grade | Each | Pack of 10 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| FrogRana pipiens | 3–4″ | Plain | $5.20 | $47.50 |
| FrogRana pipiens | 3–4″ | Double-injected | $8.95 | $82.00 |
| FrogRana pipiens | 4–5″ | Triple-injected | $12.40 | $115.00 |
| Fetal pigSus scrofa | 8–10″ | Plain | $12.60 | $116.00 |
| Fetal pigSus scrofa | 10–12″ | Double-injected | $19.80 | $184.00 |
| RatRattus norvegicus | 8–9″ | Plain | $13.68 | $127.00 |
| RatRattus norvegicus | 8–9″ | Double-injected | $18.90 | $176.00 |
| PerchPerca flavescens | 6–8″ | Plain | $7.40 | $68.00 |
| Dogfish sharkSqualus acanthias | 10–14″ | Plain | $22.50 | $210.00 |
| MinkNeogale vison | Standard | Double-injected | $38.00 | $356.00 |
| CatFelis catus | 14–17″ | Plain | $46.00 | — |
| CatFelis catus | 14–17″ | Triple-injected | $95.00 | — |
| Cow eyeDissection grade, per eye | — | Plain | $3.20 | $29.50 |
| Sheep brainWhole, with dura | — | Plain | $14.80 | $138.00 |
| Sheep heartWhole | — | Plain | $11.90 | $110.00 |
The rat, plain, at $13.68 each and the cow eye at $3.20 each are current published unit prices.
Catalogue prices are USD per unit at the pack size stated, exclude shipping, handling, hazardous-materials surcharges and any applicable tax, and are catalogue ranges for planning a requisition rather than an offer or a quotation. Reviewed September 2026. A figure for your order is confirmed on a written quotation. See the disclaimer.
Questions Preserved vertebrates
Questions about this group
Specific to preserved vertebrates. The general questions — ordering, purchase orders, substitutions, returns — are on the FAQ page.
Which grade does a standard high-school frog lab need?
If the lab identifies organs and describes the digestive and respiratory systems, plain is correct and you should not pay for injection you will not use. If the lab traces circulation — heart to artery to capillary bed to vein — you need at least double-injected, because in a plain specimen the veins are collapsed and the same colour as everything around them. Triple is for portal circulation specifically, which is usually a college topic rather than a school one.
How many specimens for a class of thirty?
Working in pairs, fifteen, plus two or three spares. Something gets dropped, mis-cut or ruined by an over-enthusiastic first incision in almost every session, and a spare costs less than a student standing and watching. Working in threes on a large specimen such as a cat or a shark, ten plus one.
What is the difference between formalin-fixed and formalin-free?
Formalin is the traditional fixative and it works, but it is an irritant and a recognised carcinogen, and a room using it needs real ventilation and a district that has signed off on it. Formalin-free holding fluids hold a specimen that has already been fixed, and they are what most school districts now specify. They also avoid the hazardous-materials surcharge on shipping. Say which you need on the order; if you say nothing we will ask rather than guess.
Can a preserved specimen be kept for next year?
Yes, if it is kept wet and sealed. Return it to a holding bag with a little holding fluid, seal it, and store it cool and dark. What ruins a stored specimen is drying out, so a bag that has lost its seal is the thing to check in August. We sell holding-fluid-safe storage bags for exactly this.
Catalogue The other groups
The rest of the catalogue
Earthworms, crayfish, grasshoppers, squid, starfish, clams and the survey sets that carry a whole phylum sequence in one order.
Algae, protozoa, bacteria, fungi, plants and live invertebrates, shipped on a calendar set by the organism rather than by the warehouse.
Sterilised barn owl pellets in first and second quality, which are different products for different lessons and are priced separately.
Scalpels, scissors, probes, forceps, pins and trays, and the assembled student and instructor sets built from them.
Telephone with the lesson, not the catalogue number
Tell us what the lesson has to show, how many students are working in pairs and which week it is scheduled for. We will name the species, grade, size, fluid and pack that fit and put it on a written quotation.
Niles Biological, Inc. · 9298 Elder Creek Rd, Sacramento, CA 95829