4i6 



Recent Literature. q"j 



Mr. Winge and his brother have published, are almost wholly unknown 

 to' American readers. This is to be regretted, as a more admirably 

 conceived and executed series of observations could scarcely be imagined, 

 and the work might well be used as a model to be followed — with neces- 

 sary modifications to suit local conditions — by local ornithological 

 societies. With the exception of some of the earliest papers, all are 

 arranged on essentially the same plan, so that a brief outline of the last 

 will give an idea of the scope and contents of each number of the 

 series. 



The report for 1896 occupies 72 pages, slightly more than the average, 

 and is divided into six sections. The first of these contains the following 

 miscellaneous introductory' matter: A statement of the number of species 

 (65) and specimens (1048) of birds sent by light keepers to the Zoological 

 Museum at Copenhagen; a list of the lights (35) from which retm-ns 

 were received ; a nominal list of the species represented, together with the 

 number of specimens of each received, as well as the number killed where 

 this is known ; a statement of the total number of species recorded during 

 the past ten years (134); the author's personal observations on the 

 movements of birds in the neighborhood of Copenhagen. The five 

 sections into which the main body of the report is divided are arranged 

 under headings which may be translated as follows: (i) Catalogue of 

 the Birds sent in from the Lights; (2) Summary of the Nights on which 

 Birds came to the Lights ; (3) Various Observations from the Lights ; 

 (4) Unusual Occurrences in 1896; (5) Observations from the Faroes. 



In the first section the nominal list from the introduction is repeated, 

 now, however, profusely annotated, always with the locality and date for 

 each specimen sent in (for some species this alone occupies a page or 

 more of text arranged chronologically and with the months alone para- 

 graphed), and often with extended critical remarks of varied character. 



The second section consists of the keepers' observations on weather 

 conditions during the nights when birds were observed, together with 

 their accounts of the actions of the birds themselves. In this section the 

 matter is arranged chronologically, the various reports for each night 

 grouped together. The keepers naturally refer to the birds by their 

 common Danish names, but at the end of each day's series of observations 

 Mr. Winge gives technical names of such species as were forwarded to the 

 Zoological Museum. Owing to the author's peculiar views on the subject 

 of nomenclature the vernacular names are to an American reader in many 

 instances the more intelligible of the two. 



In the third section the keeper's report from each light for the whole 

 year is given entire. These reports are not classified alphabetically, but 

 are arranged in a rough geographical sequence, beginning with the lights 

 on the west coast and ending with those at the extreme southeast. Some 

 of these reports cover more than three pages of running text and indicate 

 a remarkable amount of interest on the part of the keepers. 



The fourth and fifth sections, which together occupy only four pages, 



