182 NESTS AND EGGS OF NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS. 



by blowing into the hole with a blow-pipe. Do not make holes at the ends 

 of an egg for the purpose of blowing the contents out. Do not hold it too 

 tightly in your fingers, for, if it breaks, you will learn at once that a thing 

 of beauty is not always a joy forever. If the embryo is partially devel- 

 oped, the hole must necessarily be made larger, and the embryo should be 

 extracted a little at a time with an embryo hook or forceps, and cut in 

 pieces with a fine, narrow-bladed scissors. By soaking the egg in water 

 over night the embryo will often become very tender and can be taken out 

 with ease. 



After the egg is blown it should be thoroughly rinsed by taking water 

 into the mouth and spirting it through the blow-pipe. 



Eggs, as a rule, should be kept in sets; a "set" being those taken from 

 any one nest; and each one of a set should bear a number referring to a 

 corresponding one in a notebook where full particulars of the nest and 

 eggs should be given. A printed label or data blank similar to the follow- 

 ing diagram is also necessary: 



No Name 



Collected by 



Locality 



Date 



Set Indentity Incubation, 



Nest 



For illustration, the blank lines of the label should be filled in the fol- 

 lowing manner: No. 126. Name, Arkansas Flycatcher. Collected by 

 J. L. Clemmons. Locality, San Diego, California. Date, June 2, 1881. 

 Set, 1^ (indicating that the number of eggs in this set is four). Identity, 

 bird seen on nest. Incubation, begun. Nest, made of coarse sticks and 

 twigs, lined with hair and cotton, placed in an "Australian Gum Tree," 

 twenty feet from the ground. All these data should be carefully written, 

 and the label placed in the cabinet with the eggs. If there are several sets 

 of the same species, the collector should have his own number to distin- 

 guish the sets. The label with full data should ahvays accompany the set 

 in making exchanges. Besides the above particulars the note-book should 



