125 



generally used both in Europe and in America^ and has given ex- 

 ceedingly fine results. 



Inscription of the rings. The majority of my 165 rings 

 from 1899 only bore some letters stamped upon them in addition 

 to the running number, but this inscription proved insufficient: no 

 reports were received from abroad about the marked starlings. 



During the years of 1900 to 1904 incl. I therefore stamped 

 »M. Danmark« (M = Mortensen) besides the running number on the 

 starling rings and by the aid of this inscription I got three reports 

 from abroad of ringed starlings through Snouckaert v. Schau- 

 burg and H.Winge, the newspaper »Nationaltidende« and the 

 weekly paper >Vore Landsmænd i Udlandet«. Since 1906 

 v?borg%" (D — Danmark; and running number are stamped on my 

 starling-rings. 



Inscription on the inside of wide rings is soon worn out. Since 

 1903 I have sometimes given a bird a ring on each leg and thus 

 been able to give a more complete address. 



Each species of hirds, commonly known by everybody, has its 

 separate series of running numbers. 



On rings not large enough for 4 figures, the hundreds of the first 

 thousand are stamped behind the address, the hundreds of the 

 second thousand in front of it. 



Large rings bear my full address; since 1909 with the words 

 iWrite to« in front. 



A letter of control has frequently been of use, when the corre- 

 spondent gives a wrong number (e. g. from memory alone or on 

 account of an error in reading or writing). 



My journal states which of the bird's legs has been marked and 

 if the inscription is erect or inverted, when the bird is standing. 

 This precaution is necessary with regard to starlings, these birds 

 being so easily caught by everybody. Sometimes I have marked 

 nestlings of Sturnus both with ring and by cutting oif the tip of a 

 claw with the end of a pedal phalange. Hatching ring-starlings are 

 marked with a cut in the tail. 



Shape of the rings. My >rings« are bands of aluminium — 

 the corners and edges carefully smoothed — ; they are bent round 

 the metatarsus of the bird, and are so wide that dirt cannot gather 

 between them and the metatarsus. The band is rather thick to 

 make it durable (by and by it is worn at the base) and to prevent 

 the bird from removing it. 



Size of the rings vide p. 106. 



The bands are bent half together with round-nosed pliers (or 

 struck with a club round a cylindric iron-bar) and are kept in 

 consecutive order upon a stick. The smallest ones (which are com- 

 parativel}^ the most costly) cost a little more than 1 d. a piece. 



1 Vide p. 100. 



