BIRD FRIENDS 



CHAPTER I 



BIRD TRAVELERS 



Discovery of America. The subject of bird mi- 

 gration is of special interest to Americans, because 

 it is probable that migrating birds aided Columbus 

 in the discovery of America. During the latter part 

 of his voyage, when his sailors were beginning to 

 mutiny, he fell in with flocks of birds which were 

 making their annual flight from the Bermudas to 

 the Bahamas. Columbus followed these birds and 

 was thus guided to land. Otherwise it is quite pos- 

 sible that he could not have induced his sailors to 

 continue farther, and thus the discovery of America 

 would have been postponed. 



Recent records of migration. During recent 

 years, there has been kept at Washington a very 

 complete record of the facts of migration, relating 

 to the times and routes of migration and to the 

 winter homes of birds. For more than twenty years 

 these records have been collected by the Bureau of 

 Biological Survey, through the cooperation of over 

 two thousand bird students throughout North 

 America, so that now they have a large array of 



