THE OOLOGIST. 



15^ 



of our American liirds and to luni lo 

 advantage tlie ohserx alions inaile I)}' 

 our oi'iiithologists and oologists 



Our work for 188!) will he on the fam- 

 \]y of Thrushes. 



Ill the lir.st report, tlue in A))!-!), meni- 

 Ix'i's will enumerate the Thrushes known 

 to occur in their loeality anil 



I. State, by using the al)l)reviations 

 indicated, to which of the following live 

 categories (!ach species belong: 



1. Permanent Kesident, or found 

 regularly throughout the year (R). 



2. Winter Visitant, or occurs only 

 during the Winter season, passing 

 north in the Spring (W Y). 



3. Transient Visitant, or occurs only 

 during the migrations in S])ring and 

 Fall (T V). 



4. Summer Resident, or known to 

 breed, but departs soutiiward before 

 Winter (S R). 



5. Accidental Visitant, or straggler 

 from a remote locality (A V). 



Also indicate the relative al)undance, 

 as: Abundant, Common, Tolerably 

 Common or Rare. 



Synonyms: Enumerate all common 

 names applied in your hjcality, to these 

 liirds. 



The second report, due July 1, 



II. Migration: Note: When th(> spe- 

 cies is tirst seen and numlx-r observed 

 at this time. 2. When it is next seen. 

 3. When it Ijecomes common. 4. 

 When the bulk departs. ."). Wiieii the 

 last invidual is seen. 



In the Spring Migration under 4 and 

 5 would l)e giAcn the ilate when the 

 Transient Visitants at your phu-e de- 

 p:irt northward ; and in the F;ill Migra- 

 tion should be noted, the date at which 

 they arrive from the North and :it wiiicji 

 the}' go South. 



Habitat: Are thej- found in forests, 

 marshes, dry uplands, on borders of 

 ])onds or lakes, running streams or ne:ir 

 dwellings '? Can you give any re;ison 

 for this i-hoice of location ? 



Nesting: (live full full i);irticul;irs of 



constiaiction, ])osition, iieiglit fi-om 

 ground, locaJitN', jiroxiniity to water, 

 contents of nests, :is eggs or young, ex- 

 act date, incubation of eggs, identfic;i- 

 tion and coniposiiion of each nest found 

 during the year. Descriptions of sets, 

 gi\ing, in addition to ]);irticulars con- 

 cerning nest and surroundings, the si~c 

 and coloration of each egg ai"e especiallj- 

 desirable. Describe peculiar situations 

 of nests. Do the eggs laid late in the 

 season differ in size, color or niiml)er 

 from those laid earlier ? 



If so, state fully your authorit}*. 

 Natural Enemies: I^numenite the 

 1)irds, mammals or reptiles which have 

 been known to disturb, or attack any of 

 these species. Give all methods and 

 artifices used by the birds for their pro- 

 tection from enemies or storms. 

 Third report, due Oct. 1. 

 Any additional notes on the preceed- 

 ing reports and: Number of broods 

 raised by one pair of l)irds in one sea- 

 son, giving full particulars. If possi- 

 ble give tlie length of time required be- 

 fore the eggs are hatched from the time 

 they were laid and the length of time 

 each brood is cared for by the parent 

 birds. 



Habits: Explain all ))eculiar habits. 

 Describe flight. When on the ground 

 do they hop, or run V 



Song: Favorite time of day or night; 

 influence of weather on its song; diti'cr- 

 ence bet^veen song of male and female. 

 Reliitions with Cow-l)ird {Molothrna 

 ater)\ arc anj' of these species imposed 

 upon by the Cow-bird V 

 Give particulai's, date, etc. 

 Fourth report, due Dec. 1, will be on 

 the Fall Migration and additional notes 

 on the precceding reports. 



In additi(jn to this general plan, om- 

 membtns, in those states whese we have 

 a sufficient number of of observers, 

 have selected two common summer res- 

 idents whicli c;in he studied to special 

 advantage in their locality, for their 

 special attention. 



