BullDog wrote:Steve, I'm fairly sure the hard side is natural. Check out this link, which talks about using cuttlebone for casting jewelry.It has a hard and thin crust on the outside encompassing the internal softer part, the pulp, which is much thicker, and this is the part that can hold the impression of the model, the part that can be carved.
Good link Sassamo
V Lou wrote:Reading the above thread, I believe there are some misconceptions. The cuttlebone is the internal shell of a cuttlefish, a type of mollusk (it's not actually a fish). The backing of the cuttlebone is merely the dorsal shield, which is the top layer of the cuttlebone and contains proteins, sugars, fats, connective tissue, calcium, etc. Below the dorsal shield is composed of the spongy portion of the cuttlebone, which contains more sugars, proteins, calcium, connective tissue, etc. distributed in a less dense fashion. The two general components of the cuttlebone serve different functions for the cuttlefish. The cuttlebone is processed before it is sold, so it won't spoil.
This first url takes almost forever to complete the download, so be patient, like go out for a walk and come back ... but it has a great cross-sectional drawing of the internal composition of cuttlebone:
http://www.pmbc.go.th/webpmbc/ResearchB ... %20new.pdf
This next url gives general information about cuttlefish that you might find interesting. :
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/camo/anat-nf.html
I hope this helps
Robyn wrote:Since I'm new to being a turtle mom I just threw the whole thing in. I have never seen her touch it. This is very helpful info. Why would they put this backing on in the first place?
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