General Notes 63 



only two previous records for the state for this species, and Mr. 

 Harry Harris * says there is only one authentic record for the 

 Kansas City region, and suggests that " Students should be on the 

 lookout for this bird, as we are well within its winter range." 



Horace Gunthorp. 

 Topeka, Kans. 



BIRD BANDING WORK BEING TAKEN OVER BY THE 

 BIOLOGICAL SURVEY 



The Bureau of Biological Survey of Washington, D. C, has 

 taken over the work formerly carried on under the auspices of the 

 Linnaean Society of New York by the American Bird Banding As- 

 sociation. In taking over this work the Bureau feels that it shoulc 

 express the debt that students of ornithology in this country owe 

 to Mr. Howard H. Cleaves for the devotion and success with which 

 he has conducted this investigation up to a point where it has 

 outgrown the possibilities of his personal supervision. 



Under plans now being formulated this work will give a great 

 amount of invaluable information concerning the migration and 

 distribution of North American birds which will be of direct 

 service in the administration of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act, as 

 well as of much general scientific interest. 



It is desired to develop this work along two principal lines: — 

 first, the trapping and banding of waterfowl, especially ducks and 

 geese, on both their breeding and winter grounds; and secondly, 

 the systematic trapping of land birds as initiated by Mr. S. Pren- 

 tiss Baldwin the early results of which have been published 

 by him in the Proceedings of the Linnaean Society of New York, 

 No. 31, 1919, pp. 23-55. It is planned to enlist the interest and 

 services of volunteer workers, who will undertake to operate and 

 maintain trapping stations throughout the year, banding new birds 

 and recording the data from those previously banded. The results 

 from a series of stations thus operated will undoubtedly give new 

 insight into migration routes; speed of travel during migration: 

 longevity of species; affinity for the same nesting-site year after 

 year; and, in addition, furnish a wealth of information relative to 

 the behavior of the individual, heretofore impossible because of the 

 difficulty of keeping one particular bird under observation. 



The details of operation are now receiving close attention, and 

 as soon as possible the issue of bands will be announced, with full 

 Information regarding the methods to be followed and the results 

 expected. In the meantime, the Biological Survey will be glad to 



* " Birds of the Kansas City Region." Trans. Acad. Sci. St. Louis, 

 Vol. 23, p. 291. 1919. 



