116 The Wilson Bulletin.— No. 45. 



Again we make the earnest plea not to let your bird studies lapse 

 with the appearance of cold weather, but rather increase your ac- 

 tivities. Make a determined effort to bring some bird to your lunch 

 counter this winter, and give him some of your time while he is 

 profiting by your bounty. If possible keep a record of the species 

 which visit the lunch counter. It may be possible for you to deter- 

 mine the amount of food eaten by one bird in a day. That is an 

 important point. Note how the different species act toward each 

 other, as well as the individuals of a species. Does the law of 

 might govern them? Remember that winter is the best time in 

 which to make an enumeration of the birds of your region. At 

 least it is possible to keep a record of the number of individuals of 

 each species recorded. You will be surprised at the number of 

 species which may be found during the winter months in almost 

 any locality. The writer recorded no less than 40 species between 

 the first day of January, 1903, and the twenty-sixth day of Febru- 

 ary, and that is not unusual. Winter field study pays in results, 

 and pays in health. 



The output of state and local catalogues and lists of birds for 

 1903 has seldom, if ever, been equalled, omitting mention of the 

 lists of birds in foreign countries and the islands of the sea. It is 

 especially gratifying that so many of the states of the union are 

 becoming supplied with catalogues of the birds which have been 

 found within their borders. These catalogues furnish a basis for 

 work for those who are beginning the study of birds, and they 

 also furnish an excellent basis for future comparisons of bird life 

 when advancing civilization, with its inevitable changes, 

 has wrought revolutions in the habits of very many 

 species. The study of the adaptations of the birds to these 

 changed conditions will be fascinating in the extreme. During the 

 year Wisconsin has been added to the list of states which have 

 catalogued their birds, by the appearance of Kumlien's and Hollis- 

 ter's Catalogue, and Kansas and Ohio have been brought down to 

 date ornithologically by the appearance of Snow's Revised Cata- 

 logue of the Birds of Kansas, and the writer's Revised Catalogue 

 of the Birds of Ohio. We understand that Mr. H. C. Oberholser is 

 preparing a catalogue of the birds of Texas. Local lists of birds, 

 county and regional lists, have been numerous, both as separate 

 papers and articles in the magazines. The appearance of Daw- 

 son's Birds of Ohio adds a stimulus to the popular side of bird 

 study. It is the most notable book of its kind for the year, if not 

 for several years. The interest which it has already aroused in those 

 who have seen advance copies presages a heavy sale within and 

 without the state. Outside of the United States, but still within 

 our avi fauna, Part II of Macoun's Catalogue of Canadian Birds is 

 a notable contribution to ornithology. We believe thoroughly in 



