168 Lloyd, Extraction of Fat from Bird-Skins. [.April 



compared with duplicates and the color of the plumage was normal 

 in each case. 



Mgialitis semipalmata. Semipalmated Plover, Toronto, Canada, 



1905. 

 Condition. Greasy and dirty, the feathers stuck together 

 with fat; discolored, dusty. 



Result. Entire plumage clean, feathers beneath, fluffy 

 and white. 

 Charadrius dubius dubius. Philippines, 1909. 



Condition. Mouldy, greasy and stained with blood. 

 Result. Entire plumage clean, breast feathers which were 

 exposed to air still rusty, ones covered by wings perfectly 

 white. 

 Limonites rufieollis. Japan, 1895. 



Conditio?!.. Dirty, breast greasy and yellow. 

 Result. Entire plumage clean and fluffy breast almost free 

 from yellow. 

 Pelidna alpina. Scotland, 1873. 



Condition. Practically in the last stages of fatty decomposi- 

 tion; feathers hard. 



Result. Clean and free from grease, feathers soft. 



In order to determine whether or not this solvent had any de- 

 colorizing effect, a series of experiments was made. A number 

 of hummingbird skins were immersed in ether for one and one-half 

 hours, dried and compared with duplicates; a number of feathers 

 were taken from bird skins, immersed in ether for one and one-half 

 hours, and compared with feathers from^the same area on the bird- 

 skin from which they were taken ; and a number of larger feathers 

 were cut in two, one half immersed in ether for one and one-half 

 hours and compared with the untreated portion of the same feather. 

 The tests were made with a view to variety in color. The results 

 are summarized below. 



