NE W BIRD GR O UPS 1 2 1 



NORTH AMERICAN BIRD GROUPS 



ESSRS. Chapman, Figgins and Horsfal went to the 

 Far West in the latter part of April to obtain 

 animals and accessories for several groups. Their 

 first stop was on the United States Forest Reserve 

 in Nebraska, where they gathered materials for the 

 Prairie Chicken and the Burrowing Owl groups. Mr. Chapman 

 was particularly fortunate in getting some excellent photographs, 

 the first ever taken, of the Prairie Chicken in the acts of strutting 

 and booming. He erected his blind on the open prairie and was 

 in it while nineteen of the birds were going through the evolutions 

 at one time around him, entirely unconscious of his presence. 



From Nebraska the party went to Tucson, Arizona, where 

 specimens were collected for the Desert Bird group, together 

 with reptiles, small mammals and vegetation for accessories. 

 ]\Iaterial was gathered here too for the group of Allen's Jack 

 Rabbit. 



From Arizona the party, with the exception of Mr. Horsfal, 

 went to southern California for additional material, and then 

 went northward to Salt Lake City, thence to eastern Wyoming, 

 where Mr. Figgins left the party to return to New York, and 

 Mr. Chapman remained to collect Sharp-tailed Grouse on the 

 plains and afterward go into the Rocky Mountains in quest of 

 the Golden Eagle and other birds. Two of the most important 

 features of the work are the color sketches and photographs 

 obtained for use in making the group surroundings of the birds 

 true to nature. 



This expedition has been made possible through the generosity 

 of the contributors to' the North American Ornithological Fund, 

 a fund which has been provided by several friends of the Museum 

 for the adequate representation here of characteristic American 

 birds, many of which are becoming exceedingly rare. 



The use of the Nature Study collections continues to expand. 

 During the school year which has just closed 400 cabinets con- 

 taining the collections have been in circulation among 269 

 schools, and the teachers report that they have been studied by 

 690,333 pupils. 



