Vni BULLETIN 174, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM 



adult plumages ; this has been done very well in the many manuals 

 and State bird books that are now available. The names of colors, 

 when in quotation marks, are taken from Eidgway's Color Standards 

 and Color Nomenclature (1912), and the terms used to describe the 

 shapes of eggs are taken from his Nomenclature of Colors (1886). 

 The boldface type in the measurements of eggs indicates the four 

 extremes of the measurements. 



Many of those who contributed material for previous bulletins 

 have continued to cooperate. Eeceipt of material from more than 

 430 contributors has been acknowledged previously. In addition to 

 these, our thanks are due to the following new contributors: Dean 

 Amadon, E. R. Forrest, Allen Frost, J. J, Hickey, Joseph Janiec, 

 Melvin Johansen, M. B. Meanley, Jr., R. L. Meredith, E. E. Mur- 

 phey, A. G. Nye, Jr., R. T. Orr, R. S. Palmer, Cordelia J. Stanwood, 

 Wendell Taber, A. E. Thompson, and Mrs. L. J. Webster. If any 

 contributor fails to find his name in this or in one of the previous 

 lists, the author would be glad to be advised. 



Egg measurements were furnished especially for this volume by 

 Dean Amadon, A. M. Bailey, C. E. Doe, J. R. Gillin, W. C. Hanna, 

 H. L. Harllex^, R. C. Harlow, R. T. Orr, J. H. Riley, G. H. Stuart, 3d, 

 and Miss M. W. Wythe. 



Through the courtesy of the Bureau of Biological Survey, the 

 services of Frederick C. Lincoln were again obtained to compile the 

 distribution paragraphs. With the matchless reference files of the 

 Biological Survey at his disposal, his many hours of careful work 

 have produced results far more satisfactory than could have been 

 attained by the author, who claims no credit and assumes no respon- 

 sibility for this part of the work. 



Dr. Winsor M. Tyler rendered valuable assistance in reading and 

 indexing, for this group, the greater part of the leading periodicals 

 relating to North American birds, which saved the author many 

 hours of tedious work and for which he is very grateful. Dr. Tyler 

 contributed the life histories of the northern downy woodpecker and 

 yellow-bellied sapsucker. Dr. Arthur A. Allen wrote the life history 

 of the ivory -billed woodpecker, Bayard H. Christy that of the north- 

 ern pileated woodpecker, and Dr. Eugene E. Murphey that of the 

 red-cockaded woodpecker. Thanks are due also to F. Seymour Her- 

 sey for figuring the egg measurements. 



The manuscript for this volume was completed in June 1938. 

 Contributions received since then will be acknowledged later. Only 

 information of great importance could be added. The reader is 

 reminded again that this is a cooperative work ; if he fails to find in 

 these volumes anything that he knows about the birds, he can blame 

 himself for not having sent the information to — 



The Author. 



