THE STUDY OF BIRDS OUT-OF-DOORS. 



667 





Head of Cedar Waxwing. 



as a cat. Furthermore, go alone and keep the sun at your 

 back two apparently unrelated but equally important bits of 

 advice. 



The collector generally has the instincts of a hunter, and prac- 

 tice will develop them. The "squeak" is one of his most valu- 

 able aids. It is made by placing the 

 lips to the back of the hand or finger 

 and kissing vigorously. The sound 

 produced bears some resemblance to 

 the cries of a wounded or young 

 bird. In the nesting season its utter- 

 ance frequently creates much excite- 

 ment in the bird world, and at all 

 times it is useful as a means of draw- 

 ing bush- or reed-haunting species 

 from their retreats. One may enter 



an apparently deserted thicket, and, after a few minutes' squeak- 

 ing, find himself surrounded by an anxious or curious group of 

 its feathered inhabitants. 



The observer of birds will find that by far the best way to 

 study their habits is to take a sheltered seat in some favored 

 locality and become a part of the background. Your passage 

 through the woods is generally attended by sufficient noise to 

 warn birds of your coming long before you see them. They are 

 then suspicious and ill at ease. But secrete yourself near some 

 spot loved by birds, and it may be your privilege to learn the 

 secrets of the forest. 



During the year the bird life of temperate and boreal regions 

 fluctuates with the changing seasons. Birds may thus be classed 

 in the following groups according to the manner of their occur- 

 rence: Permanent residents are birds found in one locality 

 throughout the year. Summer residents come from the south 

 in the spring, rear their young, and leave in the fall. Winter 

 visitants come from the north in the fall, pass the winter, and 



leave in the spring. Transient visitants pass 

 through a given place in migrating to and 

 from their summer homes north of it. Acci- 

 dental visitants are birds which have lost 

 their way. They are generally young and 

 inexperienced, and are usually found in the 

 fall. 



The best time of the year to begin study- 

 ing birds is in the winter, when the bird 

 population of temperate regions is at the minimum. The problem 

 of identification is thus reduced to its simplest terms, and should 

 be mastered before spring introduces new elements. 



Golden-crowned Kinglet. 



