Prey Taxidermy

Prey is the studio of award-winning taxidermist Allis Markham. Offering quality educational, museum and private commissions.

We provide:
-Bird and Mammal Display Commissions (No Fish)
-Artistic Creations for Sale
-Museum and Nature Center Work (We have Migratory Bird Permits)
-Classes, events and workshops.
- Limited Pet Work (see our website section)

01/08/2026

I won! So fun being on ! I had such a great time and was so grateful to have won! Thank you so much to , my LOVELY co-contestant and all the other wonderful people at Hollywood Squares!

12/14/2025

Almost 10 years difference! These are both Great Horned Owls that I taxidermied close to a decade apart. The one of the left is from 2025 and the one on the left is from 2016. (iPhone camera quality had a glow-up too!)

When I’m working on a specimen I’ve done before, I often start by looking at reference photos of living specimens and THEN look at photos of my previous work. I ask myself what I wish I’d done differently, what looks wrong, and try to remember the challenges I had before. I usually print off pictures of my previous work and draw on top of them with my notes.

This is a great way to keep evolving in your work. No one loves revisiting past ‘failures’ but, I believe it’s only a failure if you didn’t learn anything.

As for my 2016 Great Horned Owl, I can see that I’ve evolved but I’m also not unhappy with the work. It looks like a Great Horned Owl and has some good anatomy. I could have focused more on grooming, facial shapes, feather patterns on the face and more. But if you look at most GH Owl mounts in museums, they don’t look this good.

I’m sure in 10 years I will look back on my 2025 GH Owl and have some notes for myself. The important thing is to look back in order to move forward.

** Great Horned Owls are protected in North America by the Migratory Bird Treaty Act. In the US, they may only be salvaged and/or possessed by institutions with a federal permit. I have a federal permit in order to work on them for the purposes of taxidermy. Both these specimens were found de@d and belong to institutions with permits. **

11/22/2025

Conversations with my taxidermy mentor….

I stand by my anatomical analysis of the Pocket Gopher.

11/19/2025

Student work! Here are pics from round one of our advanced birds courses at Prey. I was so honored to have 3 amazing students; Doria, Amy and David. Each with a different bird, base and completely custom poses. David even made a muddy water bank using resin, polyurethane and habitat materials!

Teaching these more advanced methods has been immensely fun and challenging for me. I’m so proud of all my students and can’t wait to share more from the next round.

There’s also one posted for February! 3 days with a limit if 4 students. Parrots, Pied Crow and more!

11/18/2025

All new taxidermy courses! Otters, Pied Crow, Parrots, in-flight birds and more! - https://mailchi.mp/preytaxidermy/finally-prey-taxidermy-merch-5853536

11/17/2025

In-Flight birds taxidermy class with me, Allis Markham!

The sky is no longer the limit! It’s time to get flying. In this 1.5 day course, students will start with a pre-prepared skin and learn to wire for custom in-flight poses. We’ll also focus on reading reference for birds in-flight and how different types of birds fly. This is where your bird taxidermy skills can truly ‘take off’.

I do recommend this course for graduates of Bird 101 or those who have other bird taxidermy experience. Why? Because we will not be prepping the skins or making bodies in class. Persons with very good hand skills may take the course without taxidermy experience but please know that it is delicate work and can be challenging.

🐦 created by Prey Taxidermy apprentice, .chrysalis

10/15/2025

Anyone else ever think this song was saying ‘Alex the seal’?

Regardless, this is a California Sea Lion pup (not a Seal) for a local animal rehabilitation center, . They do incredible work re-releasing over 40% animal patients! We’ve been honored to work with them on their mobile outreach van for public education.

This Sea Lion pup wasn’t so lucky after her mom was likely taken by red tide. But, now she’s an educational ambassador teaching the public about wildlife and how to protect it. We were honored to work on her and thankful for the opportunity to educate the public about her kind.

How did I make the underlying form? It’s a wrapped body and a head-form I created using 3D scanning technology. And, with the help of one of my stellar apprentices, . You can learn all about these techniques in my upcoming online course available via my website.

**Please be aware that all Sea Lions, Seals and other pinnipeds are protected in the United States and this work is done under special permit. **

10/14/2025

So wonderful to have been featured on our local site about the upcoming remodel of the Griffith Park Visitor’s Center.
The Griffith Park Visitor Center is literally 15 minutes from the Prey studio! I have such fond memories of hiking and birdwatching in the park. It’s so great to be improving my local nature center for the community. I can’t wait to share the results with all of you.

Also, I have a couple classes posted on the website if you’re looking to learn this ‘wild’ art!

Special thanks to Brenda Rees for the great article and photos!

09/18/2025

At Prey Taxidermy, I’ve spent over 15 years developing unique curricula, methods, and resources to share the art and science of taxidermy with students, apprentices, and clients around the world. This has been an overwhelmingly positive experience, and I am proud of my students, assistants, and apprentices who have gone on to forge their own professional paths. Supporting emerging taxidermists, advancing the craft, and creating new ways of teaching museum techniques has been my life’s work.
Recently, I became aware that certain materials based on Prey’s curriculum and proprietary information are being shared elsewhere without authorization. In addition, I have seen Prey Taxidermy’s client projects represented on another company’s portfolio page in a way that could mislead viewers about which studio performed the work and who the client engaged.
Please know that:
• All Prey Taxidermy curricula, class materials, and techniques are protected by copyright and confidentiality agreements.
• Only courses, workshops, and content offered directly through Prey Taxidermy or listed partners are officially authorized.
• Prey Taxidermy client projects should never be represented as belonging to another company. If you notice your institution listed on another taxidermy studio’s website or portfolio, I encourage you to reach out to that business directly to request a correction.
• I am actively pursuing all legal remedies to protect my intellectual property and to ensure my clients’ and students’ trust is safeguarded.
If you have purchased taxidermy class materials elsewhere that appear similar to Prey’s or were developed at Prey, please know they are not authorized by me. These materials infringe on my copyright and were repackaged, shared, and sold without permission. If you purchased them through a platform, I encourage you to request a refund directly from that platform, as platforms are responsible for addressing unauthorized content and issuing refunds.
I remain deeply committed to the integrity of this craft, to ethical practice, and to fostering a community where learning and respect go hand in hand.

📸 are from 2011 - 2015!

09/11/2025

Grey Fox for The City of Claremont for their nature education programs. This guy was in Claremont found on a hiking path having passed naturally.

With this mount, I used a face system form from with quite a few modifications. The client wanted the fox to be stepping up on something and this guy was especially small for a Grey Fox.
If you scroll, you can see my process of cutting up the form for both size and position, then using polyurethane pour-foam to put it back together.
Brian’s face system was really different from what I’ve used and I really liked it actually. (This is NOT an ad) For most of the work I do I have to make my own heads (protected, rare, pets) so this was a welcomed departure to work with a high-quality form with his facial work included. I should also mention that the sculpt of the body form was really nice. Had I not had to achieve a certain pose, I would not have changed it except sizing down.

Again, not an ad. I just always like to experiment with different forms, techniques and ways of doing my work. There’s no right way to do taxidermy as long as you can get an accurate result that is preserved to last. Keep learning!

Thanks, 👍

Just wanted to share this foxy little creature and get back to sharing my craft.

Address

2684 Lacy Street
Los Angeles, CA
90031

Website

http://preytaxidermy.com/

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