THE AMERICAN MUSEUM JOURNAL 



State. These photographs are in sets of six showing each forest 

 tree barren of leaves and in fuh leaf, the trunk, a single leaf, 

 the flower and the fruit. As far as is practicable, each set has 

 been made from but one tree. The exhibit of the Department 

 of Public Instruction will include, also, a complete series of 

 photographs of the exhibition halls of the Museum, taken espe- 

 cially to show the study of our collections by classes of pupils 

 from the free public schools. These series of photographs of 

 trees have been especially commended by the national and 

 State forestiy authorities, who have requested the privilege of 

 reproducing them in the illustration of their reports. 



AN EXHIBIT DESIGNED TO ILLUSTRATE TERMS USED 

 IN DESCRIPTIVE ORNITHOLOGY. 



N order to make the bird collection of greater value 

 to students, there lately have been placed on 

 exhibition several series showing birds' bills, feet, 

 tails, wings and feathers, with the technical names 

 which are applied to- them by ornithologists. Thus, 

 referring to figure 9 in the greatly reduced reproduction on page 

 32 of the exhibits showing "Types of Bihs," the nature of a 

 hypognathous bill is seen at once, and the technical name (Greek 

 vno, under, yvddo?, jaw) is found to relate to the fact that the 

 under mandible is longer than the upper, a condition rare among 

 birds. Again, turning to the plate of feet, it will be observed 

 that a zygodactyle foot (Greek Qvyov, a yoke, ^(xktvXo?, a digit) 

 has two toes in front and two behind, hence the technical name, 

 meaning, literally, yoke-toed. 



These two illustrations are sufficient to show the practical 

 use of this exhibit, but the thoughtful student will go a step 

 further, and seeing, for instance, so many bills and feet brought 

 into direct comparison with one another, will inquire, "Why this 

 great variation in form'" This thought will lead to a study of 

 the relation between habit and structure, one of the most inter- 

 esting branches of the study of birds in nature. The hypogna- 

 thous bill of the Black Skimmer, which in the dead specimen 



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