2IO Recetit Literature. \\%i 



worth observins;." The work is divided into four parts, entitled : Part I, 

 'Water-birds in their Homes : Little Studies in Environment' (pp. 3-64); 

 Part II, 'Structure and Comparison : Little Stories in Differentiation ' 

 (p. 67-118); Part III, 'Problems in Bird Life: Little Studies in Zoologi- 

 cal Theory ' (PP- 121-172); Part IV, 'Some Common Land-Birds ; Little 

 Studies in the Art of Observation' (pp. 175-259); and an Appendix (pp. 

 263-276). Each part consists of a number of topics, to mention a few of 

 which under each will suffice to give an idea of the scope and mode of 

 treatment. Thus, in Part I, we have 'Among the Reeds and Rushes,' 

 treating of the Grebe and Loon; 'An Alaskan Island^The Ancient 

 Murrelet,' and eight or ten other sketches. In Part II, such matters as 

 ' Comparing Bones,' ' The foot of a Swimming Bird,' ' A Feather,' ' Com- 

 paring I'eet,' ' Comparing Bills,' etc. ; in Part III, 'The Basis of Classifi- 

 cation/ ' How Birds are named,' ' A Subspecies,' ' Protection by Color,' 

 'Distribution,' 'Migration,' etc.; in Part IV, 'About Birds' Drinking,' 

 * How a Hawk eats his Food,' ' How the Shrike hunts,' ' A Dead Beat — the 

 Cowbird,' etc. The Appendix gives ' Zoogeographical Divisions of the 

 World ' (with a map of those of North America), ' Hints on observing 

 Birds,' etc., including, finally, a list of books on North American orni- 

 thology, consisting of about 70 well selected titles. While there is a 

 very full table of contents, there is unfortunately no index, which, in such 

 a work, is an important and surprising omission. 



The book as a whole is well planned for its purpose, and fills a new 

 role in the list of popular bird books ; the topics are well chosen and the 

 whys and wherefores of many points in bird philosophy are attractively 

 and intelligently presented. A lapsus here and there will not escape the 

 critical reader, as on p. 134, where there seems to be a little confusion as 

 to east and west in reference to the races of Crow Blackbirds ; but the 

 few slips of a semi-technical character really detract little from the 

 usefulness of this very excellent little book. — J. A. A. 



Mrs. Eckstorm's 'The Woodpeckers.' 1 — This little book treats of the 

 family of Woodpeckers as represented in North America, dealing with 

 their habits and structure in an intelligent and orderly way, in a series 

 of sixteen short chapters, the character of which may be gathered from 

 such headings as ' How to know a Woodpecker,' ' How the Woodpecker 

 catches a Grub,' how he 'courts his mate,' 'makes a house,' etc., with 

 four chapters on his 'tools' — his bill, foot, tail, and tongue, etc. A 

 special chapter is also devoted to each of several leading species, as the 

 Flicker, the Downy Woodpecker, the Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, the Red- 

 headed Woodpecker, and the Californian Woodpecker. Then there is a 



^The Woodpeckers | By | Fannie Hardy Eckstorm | With Illustrations | 

 [Vignette] Boston and New York | Houghton Mifflin and Company | The 

 Riverside Press, Cambridge | 1901 — Square i2mo. pp. viii-|- 132, 5 col. pll. 

 and 22 text cuts. Price, $ i.oo. 



