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  ANNUAL 
  EEPORT 
  SMITHSONIAN 
  INSTITUTION, 
  1927 
  

  

  It 
  is, 
  however, 
  important 
  to 
  direct 
  attention 
  to 
  one 
  of 
  the 
  most 
  in- 
  

   teresting 
  and 
  important 
  chapters 
  in 
  the 
  annals 
  of 
  American 
  bird- 
  

   banding 
  activities, 
  written 
  by 
  S. 
  Prentiss 
  Baldwin, 
  of 
  Cleveland, 
  

   Ohio, 
  and 
  which 
  opened 
  a 
  new 
  field 
  for 
  the 
  study 
  of 
  life 
  histories. 
  In 
  

   1913, 
  while 
  engaged 
  in 
  a 
  campaign 
  to 
  rid 
  his 
  premises 
  of 
  the 
  

   English 
  sparrows 
  {Passer 
  domesticus) 
  he 
  found 
  that 
  the 
  elimination 
  

   of 
  these 
  birds 
  had 
  the 
  usual 
  effect 
  of 
  attracting 
  desirable 
  native 
  

   species 
  to 
  the 
  vicinity. 
  To 
  reduce 
  the 
  sparrows, 
  Mr. 
  Baldwin 
  used 
  

   several 
  traps 
  of 
  the 
  type 
  originated 
  and 
  recommended 
  for 
  this 
  pur- 
  

   pose 
  by 
  the 
  Biological 
  Survey. 
  These 
  traps, 
  known 
  as 
  Government 
  

   sparrow 
  traps, 
  capture 
  the 
  birds 
  uninjured, 
  leaving 
  to 
  the 
  trapper 
  

   their 
  manner 
  of 
  disposition. 
  Mr. 
  Baldwin's 
  first 
  report 
  of 
  his 
  band- 
  

   ing 
  work, 
  which 
  was 
  presented 
  to 
  the 
  American 
  Ornithologist's 
  Union 
  

   at, 
  New 
  York 
  City 
  on 
  November 
  11, 
  1919, 
  and 
  later 
  printed 
  (1919), 
  

   well 
  describes 
  how 
  his 
  investigations 
  were 
  started. 
  He 
  states, 
  in 
  

   part 
  : 
  

  

  * 
  * 
  * 
  It 
  was 
  when 
  I 
  learned 
  of 
  the 
  American 
  Bird 
  Banding 
  Association 
  

   that 
  the 
  traps 
  acquired 
  a 
  new 
  and 
  much 
  greater 
  significance, 
  for, 
  as 
  the 
  house 
  

   sparrows 
  decreased, 
  the 
  traps 
  became 
  the 
  resort 
  of 
  native 
  birds. 
  In 
  the 
  spring 
  

   of 
  1914 
  I 
  began 
  placing 
  bands, 
  not 
  only 
  upon 
  young 
  birds 
  in 
  the 
  nest, 
  but 
  upon 
  

   many 
  adults 
  secured 
  from 
  the 
  traps, 
  and 
  by 
  1915 
  it 
  became 
  evident 
  that 
  this 
  

   could 
  be 
  done 
  on 
  a 
  large 
  scale, 
  and 
  with 
  most 
  interesting 
  results 
  in 
  returned 
  

   birds. 
  

  

  Mr. 
  Baldwin's 
  report 
  came 
  at 
  a 
  psychological 
  time, 
  as 
  the 
  results 
  

   of 
  Doctor 
  Wetmore's 
  work 
  had 
  caused 
  Dr. 
  E. 
  W. 
  Nelson, 
  then 
  

   Chief 
  of 
  the 
  Biological 
  Survey, 
  to 
  give 
  serious 
  consideration 
  to 
  the 
  

   value 
  of 
  this 
  form 
  of 
  study 
  in 
  connection 
  with 
  the 
  administration 
  of 
  

   the 
  migratory 
  bird 
  treaty 
  act. 
  In 
  January 
  of 
  the 
  following 
  year 
  

   (1920) 
  the 
  American 
  Bird 
  Banding 
  Association 
  dissolved 
  its 
  organ- 
  

   ization 
  and 
  turned 
  over 
  its 
  records 
  and 
  effects 
  to 
  the 
  Biological 
  Sur- 
  

   vey. 
  A 
  short 
  time 
  later 
  the 
  writer 
  was 
  appointed 
  to 
  take 
  charge 
  

   of 
  the 
  work, 
  now 
  under 
  governmental 
  supervision. 
  

  

  PRESENT 
  METHODS 
  

  

  The 
  legend 
  on 
  the 
  bands 
  was 
  again 
  changed 
  and 
  those 
  now 
  in 
  use 
  

   carry 
  on 
  the 
  outer 
  surface, 
  in 
  addition 
  to 
  a 
  serial 
  number, 
  the 
  legend 
  

   " 
  Notify 
  Biological 
  Survey, 
  Washington, 
  D. 
  C." 
  (PI. 
  1, 
  e, 
  g, 
  h, 
  i, 
  j, 
  k.) 
  

   This 
  complete 
  legend 
  can, 
  of 
  course, 
  be 
  impressed 
  only 
  on 
  the 
  larger 
  

   bands, 
  the 
  smaller 
  sizes 
  having 
  the 
  words 
  " 
  Biological 
  Survey," 
  abbre- 
  

   viated 
  to 
  "Biol. 
  Surv." 
  or 
  "Bi. 
  Surv.," 
  while 
  the 
  word 
  "Notify" 
  is 
  

   omitted 
  from 
  the 
  smallest 
  sizes. 
  The 
  address, 
  " 
  Washington, 
  D. 
  C.," 
  

   likewise 
  is 
  abbreviated 
  to 
  "Wash. 
  D. 
  C." 
  and 
  stamped 
  upon 
  the 
  inner 
  

   surface 
  of 
  the 
  band. 
  Any 
  of 
  these 
  legends 
  is, 
  however, 
  sufficiently 
  

   complete 
  to 
  insure 
  delivery 
  of 
  a 
  letter, 
  as 
  the 
  post-office 
  officials 
  have 
  

   been 
  fully 
  advised 
  of 
  the 
  work 
  and 
  have 
  delivered 
  promptly 
  envel- 
  

  

  