52 MUSEUM OF COMPARATIVE ZOOLOGY 



collection of North American birds, amounting, at that time, to 

 about 12,000 specimens, and in the same year Mr. F. H. Kennard 

 also deposited his collection of around 5000 specimens. Both of 

 these collections are kept separate from the main collection, and 

 while they will eventually become a part of the corpus of the collec- 

 tion, they are at present under the control of their respective owners, 

 who are actively engaged in adding to, and improving, them. To 

 these Mr. C. F. Batchelder, in 1933, added his collection of over 

 7000 skins, as a gift. 



Since the foregoing pages were written the Harvard Australian 

 Expedition has returned with many birds from Australia not pre- 

 viously in our series and with a good collection from Papua as well. 

 Large collections have recently been received from central and 

 southern Brazil. 



The skins are all arranged in a single systematic series and form 

 the most accessibly arranged large collection in existence. 



There is a rather large and almost completely catalogued collec- 

 tion of birds' eggs and nests. There is much historical material, eggs 

 taken by Audubon, and other early naturalists, but the collection 

 has a long way to go before it can be called really representative. 

 Under the care of the Department of Birds there is also a very valu- 

 able collection of skeletal material and a few important alcoholic 

 specimens. This part of the collection owes much to Dr. G. M. 

 Allen's industrv and interest. 



