INTRODUCTION XV 



How TO WATCH BIRDS. In looking for birds 

 be careful not to frighten them away. As shyer 

 kinds are almost sure to fly before you in any 

 case, the best way is to go quietly to a good spot 

 and sit down and wait for them to return and 

 proceed with their business unconscious of spec- 

 tators. Do not look toward the sun, as colors will 

 not show against the light. 



In nesting time, birds may be found at home at 

 any hour, as the nestling's meal-time comes with- 

 out regard for callers ; but during migration, birds 

 are moving, and best seen from 4.30 to 8.30 A. M. 

 and 4 to 8 P. M. 



If you begin watching birds in the spring, when 

 they are coming back from a winter in the south, 

 you will be kept busy looking up the names of 

 the new arrivals ; but even when intent on the dis- 

 tinguishing marks of the birds, you may make a 

 great many interesting discoveries as to their 

 ways of life. It is one of the pleasures of the 

 season to keep a dated list of the migrants as they 

 come north. The first year this will be exciting 

 from the daily surprises of new arrivals ; and as 

 the years go by it will be of increasing interest 

 from anticipations based on old dates, and the 

 changes that occur with variations of season. 

 (See Appendix, p. 367.) 



How BIRDS AFFECT VILLAGE TREES, GAR- 

 DENS, AND FARMS. Village improvement so- 



