Monthly Bulletin 5 



own inclinations, or remained in groups watching the birds about the door- 

 yard at the farmhouse headquarters. 



That most wonderful bird of all — ^Mr. Edward Avis, — with his mar- 

 vellous reproductions of bird songs, entertained the audience at the after- 

 noon meeting, which was held at the Field residence close by; where 

 addresses were also given, and later an "experience meeting" of the Local 

 Secretaries was held. The generous hospitality of Mrs. Field in opening 

 her house to our visitors was much appreciated by all. 



During the day more than one hundred and fifty people viewed the 

 exhibits at the office and Audubon Room at headquarters. 



Our dooryard birds attracted much attention and admiration. Fifteen 

 or twenty purple finches remained about the house throughout the day, 

 feeding at close range upon the seed scattered on the stone porch. A pair 

 of rose-breasted grosbeaks also fed here within a few yards of the observers. 

 Our one junco still remaining with us was a regular visitor to the porch 

 for his share of the food, while several chipping sparrows hopped about 

 among them, or added their bit of song to the liquid calls of the oriole 

 overhead in the elm trees. A handsome male white-crowned sparrow also 

 spent most of the day here in the dooryard as he has for several days 

 past, giving all who watched a splendid opportunity to see this rare migrant 

 feed unconcernedly a few yards away, or to hear his soft, sweet song in 

 the trees just overhead. A house wren sang close by from the tangle of 

 the oldfashioned garden; a ruby-throated hummingbird occasionally ap- 

 peared, and a pair of bluebirds, nesting in one of our dooryard boxes, 

 formed a welcome addition by their bright colors and soft, warbling notes. 

 The songs and calls of many of our common birds — especially those 

 of the purple finch and certain calls of the jay — seem to confuse many 

 persons. An immature bird singing, or a bird giving only part of its 

 song, frequently misleads even a careful observer, and too much stress can- 

 not be laid upon the importance of very careful and repeated observations, 

 both of the notes and markings of a bird before positive identity is stated. 



Keeping lists of birds may be very valuable for comparison and study 

 and is by all means to be encouraged, but the making of a list simply for 

 the purpose of seeing how many one may observe in a day is apt to lead to 

 careless observation and insufficient evidence of the identity of the bird. 

 Especially is this true among the warblers, many of which vary their songs 

 and calls; and, with the differences also apparent in the changing plumage 

 of some species, mistakes are easy to make. 



The pose, shape, habits, color and actions should all be taken into 

 account when observing birds, and a long acquaintance with them shows 

 that there is also a marked individuality among many of the same species. 

 This is true principally of their songs, and when apparent adds to the 

 difficulty of recognizing them. We are apt to expect a certain kind of bird 

 to always act in the same way and to sing the same song, and we find 

 that they no more do this than do individuals of the human race. We 

 should also remember that light conditions have much to do with the 

 apparent size and coloring of a bird, as does also the angle of view when 

 noting its markings. Let us see more things in the out-of-doors, but let us 

 understand those things which we do see better. 



Observers of long experience need not be cautioned with these sug- 

 gestions, but the writer is prompted to make them after twenty-seven years 

 of field observation and study among the birds, in various localities and 

 under a wide range of conditions, and after leading classes in bird study for 

 several years. 



