xviii PLAN OF THE WORK 



end of its bill to the tip of its longest tail-feather. The length of the 

 wing (= W.) is the distance from the "bend of the wing" to the end of 

 the longest primary. The length of the tail (= T.) is the distance from 

 the base, or insertion of the middle feathers, to the end of the longest 

 feather. The length of the tarsus (= Tar.) is the distance from the 

 base, or insertion of the toes, to the end of the tibia, or what in reality 

 is the heel. The "tarsus" is therefore the true foot of the bird, while 

 the part to which this name is generally applied consists only of the 

 toes. The length of the bill (= B.), or "culmen," is the distance from 

 the base of the feathers on the forehead to the tip of the upper mandible 

 in a straight line. With the exception of total length, these measure- 

 ments are generally taken with a pair of dividers. 



Range. The paragraphs under this heading are taken from the 

 "Check-List" (third edition, 1910) of the American Ornithologists' 

 Union. In some few instances I have abridged, and in others expanded 

 or emended the original. Based primarily on the unexampled series of 

 records on file in the Biological Survey of the United States Depart- 

 ment of Agriculture, these outlines of distribution are more accurate 

 and detailed than any we have before had of North American birds. 



Following the paragraphs on range are exact, concise statements 

 of the birds' status, manner and times of occurrence, at various local- 

 ities from the District of Columbia northward to Cambridge, Mass., 

 and thence westward to southeastern Minnesota. Each locality is 

 treated by a recognized authority, from notes based on observations 

 extending over many years. The statement in italics in the first edition 

 of the "Handbook," that the dates given represent the "usual times 

 of migration" appears, by some readers, to have been overlooked. It 

 may be well, therefore, to emphasize it here. 



The data from Washington, D. C., were supplied by Dr. C. W. Rich- 

 mond of the United States National Museum. Not only has Dr. Rich- 

 mond had a prolonged personal experience in this field, but he has had 

 access to the notes of other local ornithologists. 



The water birds of Long Island are treated by William Dutcher, 

 who for years made our coast birds a subject of special investigation. 

 Sportsmen, lighthouse keepers, and ornithologists have all contributed 

 to his splendid series of notes on the movements of waterfowl and bay 

 birds. In more recent years, Mr. Dutcher's work has been continued 

 by Dr. W. C. Braislin, from whose paper on the Birds of Long Island 

 (Abst. Proc. Linnaean Society, Nos. 17-19, 1904-7) I have supple- 

 mented or emended Mr. Dutcher's notes. 



Dr. A. K. Fisher supplied the notes from Ossining, New York. This 

 locality formed the field of his ornithological labors for fifteen years. 

 Within the limits of the town of Ossining, he has observed no less than 

 236 species of birds. I doubt if any other one person in northeastern 

 America has recorded so large a number from so small an area. 



Cambridge, Massachusetts, is historic ground [in the annals of 

 ornithology. From the time of Nuttall, its bird-life has been studied 



