130 



common birds in different states of i:)lumage, commencing 

 with the nestlings. The Curator hopes the Society may be 

 able to authorize the necessary expense for doing this the 

 present year. The donations for the past year have not been 

 very numerous ; they number 188 specimens received fi'om 

 the Chicago Academy of Science, Prof W. B. Rogers, Drs. 

 Aten, Bryant and Coolidge, and Messrs. E. A. Brigham, P. A. 

 Gidney, T. Kumlein, S. H. Scudder and J. T. Smith, and by 

 purchase. 



The Department of Oology is at present limited to a few 

 of the railing cases of the uj^per gallery, designed for Insects ; 

 it numbers about 800 specimens of eggs and nests on exhibi- 

 tion, almost entirely of American species. During the past 

 year there has been an addition of 164 specimens from Drs. 

 Bryant and Packard, Messrs. Hills and Willis, and the 

 Chicago Academy of Science, and by j^urchase. Most of 

 them, however, were either of very common species or of 

 httle scientific value. The Cm-ator considers it worthy 

 of remark that the eggs of any bu'd, unless the parent bird 

 has been fully identified, are of no scientific value whatever ; 

 and farther that there is no department in Natural History 

 wherein absolute and exact care in ascertaining and in per- 

 manently recording the origin of each specimen, is so essen- 

 tial to its value ; the eggs of very many species are absolutely 

 indistinguishable fi-om those of several others, unless thus 

 determined. 'Nor is it enough to ascertain their origin alone ; 

 to remain of permanent value, this knowledge must be asso- 

 ciated with the specimens by some abiding records of pater- 

 nity. These important and indispensable laws cannot be too 

 strongly urged upon the attention of all who would make 

 collections for themselves or others, for scientific purposes; 

 without constant attention to exact identification, collections 

 are valueless and specimens are of no intrinsic importance. 



Owing to the absence of the Curator of Conchology, I am 

 miable to give so full an account of om' admirable collections 

 in this direction as is desirable, though I have received from 

 him some notes in regard to them. The Gasteropods alone 



