12 WHEN TO FIND BIRDS. 



Experience will soon show you the places where birds are most 

 abundant. The more varied the nature of the country the greater 

 number of species you may expect to find inhabiting it. An ideal 

 locality would be a bit of tree-dotted meadow with a reed-bordered 

 pond or stream, surrounded by woods, rolling uplands, and orchards. 



Common sense will tell you how to act in the field. Birds are gen- 

 erally shy creatures and must be approached with caution. You must 

 not, therefore, go observing or collecting dressed in flaming red, but 

 in some inconspicuous garb and as quietly as a cat. Furthermore, go 

 alone and keep the sun at your back — two apparently unrelated but 

 equally important bits of advice. 



The collector generally has the instincts of a hunter, and practice 

 will develop them. The " squeak " is one of his most valuable aids. 

 It is made by placing the lips to the back of the hand or finger and 

 kissing vigorously. The sound produced bears some resemblance to 

 the cries of a wounded or young bird. In the nesting season its utter- 

 ance frequently creates much excitement in the bird world, and at all 

 times it is useful as a means of drawing bush- or reed-haunting species 

 from their retreats. One may enter an apparently deserted thicket, 

 and, after a few minutes' squeaking, find himself surrounded by an 

 anxious or curious group of its feathered inhabitants. 



The observer of birds will find that by far the best way to study 

 their habits is to take a sheltered seat in some favored locality and 

 become a part of the background. Your passage through the woods 

 is generally attended by sufficient noise to warn birds of your coming 

 long before you see them. They are then suspicious and ill at ease. 

 But secrete yourself near some spot loved by birds, and it may be your 

 privilege to learn the secrets of the forest. 



When to Find Birds. — During the year the bird-life of temperate 

 and boreal regions fluctuates with the changing seasons. Birds may 

 thus be classed in the following groups according to the manner of 

 their occurrence : Permanent residents are birds found in one locality 

 throughout the year. Summer residents come from the south in the 

 spring, rear their young, and leave in the fall. Winter visitants come 

 from the north in the fall, pass the winter, and leave in the spring. 

 Transient visitants pass through a given place in migrating to and 

 from their summer homes north of it. Accidental visitants are birds 

 which have lost their way. They are generally young and inexperi- 

 enced, and are usually found in the fall. 



The best time of the year to begin studying birds is in the winter, 

 when the bird population of temperate regions is at the minimum. 

 The problem of identification is thus reduced to its simplest terms, 

 and should be mastered before spring introduces new elements. 



