December 



what birds are to be expected at any given time 

 and place, and thus confining the attention to 

 a few birds at a time. This latter course in- 

 volves more preliminary work, but has the ad- 

 vantage that thereby the live specimens will 

 generally be identified at a glance. The tem- 

 perament and circumstances of the individual 

 will determine the method to be adopted. For 

 myself, I learned the names and coloring of all 

 the song-birds of New England before I had 

 seen half a dozen living species, a method that 

 another person might find very irksome. 



One soon finds that the size (particularly 

 the length) of a bird is one of the most impor- 

 tant factors in determining its species. Where 

 there is some uncertainty in regard to the 

 characteristic coloring, an approximate idea of 

 the size is of great assistance ; while there are 

 several instances of distinct species among the 

 land-birds, and still more among the water- 

 fowl, that are colored exactly alike or nearly 

 so, and appear to be only larger and smaller 

 editions of the same creature ; like the hairy 

 and the downy woodpeckers, and (when seen 

 at a distance) the pine grosbeak and the cross- 

 bill. As birds in the wild state will not sub- 

 mit to any rules, twelve-inch or otherwise, it is 



305 



