Suggestions for Study 3 



If we can get access to even a very small museum 

 collection of our native birds, or a set of fairly 

 good colored pictures of them, preliminary identifi- 

 cation of some of these will greatly simplify matters. 



Suppose we have had some such preliminary 

 practice, and, equipped with our glasses, we now 

 start out for our first genuine bird hunt- We are 

 dressed in dull browns or greens which attract 

 little attention, and wear soft felt hats which can 

 be pulled forward or pushed back as occasion may 

 demand, and into which we can fasten leaves, thus 

 transforming ourselves into a species of tree, and 

 disarming the suspicions of our new acquaintances. 

 We shall not need gloves ; on a day when bare 

 hands are in the least uncomfortable we should not 

 find birds enough to make a first attempt desirable. 



We have chosen a sunny morning of late April ; 

 we shall not now encounter that bewildering num- 

 ber and variety of bird life which will greet us 

 a month hence, or be perplexed by immature or 

 transitional plumage, and, best of all, the leaves, 

 "no larger than a chipmunk's ear," cannot to-day 

 afford that friendly shelter which will baffle us 

 so often a few weeks hence. It is about half-past 

 seven ; a couple of hours earlier would have been 

 better, but at this season the morning " office hours ' ; 

 run on well into the forenoon. And we can come 



