What causes parched earth artifacts on a section?

• A. A flotation bath that is too warm
• B. Over-fixation
• C. Over-staining
• D. Excessive dehydration

Answer: (A)

Parched earth artifacts come from the tissue drying out during the flotation step. If the flotation bath is too warm, water evaporates quickly from the surface, and the section can dry before it’s properly mounted. That desiccation creates a dry, cracked, desiccated appearance that resembles parched earth. To prevent this, keep the flotation bath at a moderate temperature and minimize the time the section spends on the surface. By contrast, over-fixation makes tissue overly rigid and cross-linked, over-staining changes color intensity without causing this dryness, and excessive dehydration causes shrinkage and brittleness overall—none produce the specific dry, cracked look of parched earth.