46 



The i\.VIFAUNA. 



AN ILLUSTRATED 



MONTHL V MAGAZINE. 



DEVOTED TO 



O6LOGY AND ORNITHOLOGY 



EDITED BY 

 W. H. HOFFMAN. 



Original Contributions with or without illustrations of 



interest to the studj- of Birds, their Nests 



and Eggs are earnestly desired. 



Issued at Santa Barbara, California. 

 One Year in advance, (postpaid) . One Dollar. 



Single Copies, 



Ten Cents. 



ADVERTISING RATES ; 



(Terms Cash with Order.) 



I page (outside) Each Insertion. $10.00 



}4page " " " 500 



I page (inside) " " 8.00 



}-^ page " " 4-00 



Per inch • i.oo 



Special rates on time contracts. 



jE^~ Remittances should be made bj- Draft, Express or P. 

 O. Money Order, Registered Letter or Postal Note. Unused 

 Postage Stamps of any denomination will be accepted for 

 sums under one dollar. Make Money Order and Drafts 

 payable and address all subscriptions and communications 

 to W. H. HOFFMAN, 



903 State Street. 



Santa Barbara, Cal. 



The publisher of Avifauna takes no small 

 pleasure in again presenting the work, after so 

 long a delay. We will not now discuss the many 

 reasons why the work was so long suspended, 

 more than to hint that the " hard times " had 

 •considerable to do with it. 



We now present the magazine to its old friends 

 •vs'ith the belief that they will find in its ample 

 pages matter that interests and instructs. The 

 main topic implied in its name, A.vi fauna (bird- 

 life), has made many and constantly increasing 

 numbers of friends since our last issue. Where 

 one person was interested in our feathered friends 

 then, we can say twice or three times the number 

 are interested now. And we are very glad it is 

 so. The birds are a part of the Divine creation 

 that appeals more and more to our sympathies, 

 as we use more and more our eyes and reflect on 

 the wonderful mechanism that propels them 



through space. From now on we hope to issue 

 our magazine with reasonable promptitude on 

 the fifteenth of each month. We will try and 

 make each number more and more interesting, 

 and to do our best we ask the help of all who 

 love to watch and studv the birds. 



The present issue is not nearly up to our inten- 

 tion in regard to future issues. We had many 

 obstacles to overcome incidental to changing the 

 place of publication from Los Angeles to this 

 city, and everything could not be expected to run 

 as smoothly as we may expect in the future. But 

 we offer no apologies. Let the magazine speak 

 for itself: hoe our own row; make its own 

 friends. That 's our way. 



* 



All old subscribers will receive the magazine to 

 the limit of their subscriptions, and with the 

 object of doing the most and best work in view, 

 we ask all our friends to assist the magazine to 

 new subscribers, as far as possible. 



* * 



The more patronage we get, the better maga- 

 zine we can give — will give. 



* * * 

 Many of our birds have a way of dealing with 

 the robbers of their eggs that is well worth study- 

 ing. Take, for instance, the swallow: their nests 

 are usually safe from man without resorting to 

 artificial methods of reaching them. The wren 

 is sly enough in placing its nest to elude the cat. 

 The eagles generally select a site beyond the skill 

 of the average collector, while the P. B. grebe 

 locates its nest and covers its eggs so as to elude 

 the strictest search of the amateur and also the 

 crow. The crows and jays are incessant robbers, 

 but many of our birds protect their eggs well by 

 their variations of nesting sites. Crows, jays, 

 cats, and snakes are natural enemies to all birds. 



W. D. Cobleigh reports finding sixty-six differ- 

 ent specimens of birds breeding on a 160-acre 

 farm in Fulton County, Illinois. This farm lies 

 in the river-bottoms,' second bottoms, and the 

 bluffs. 



Blow our own horn now; others will blow it 

 later. 



Prepare A 1 skins and specimens. It reflects 

 credit. 



Cannot the oologists of America get up a stan- 

 dard data blank? Some one suggest. 



Read the latest periodicals of date and keep 

 posted. Subscribe for the Avifauna noio. 



Who has found a nest of the Crested Fly 

 Catcher without the traditional snake skin? ' 



