270 APPENDIX. 



Habits : walking, hopping ; soaring, hovering ; terrestrial, arboreal, climb- 

 ing ; perch preferred, trunk, limb, tree-top, dead twig, etc. ; 

 manner of sitting, erect, crouched, lengthwise of limb (as the 

 night hawks) ; manner of flying, direct, undulating, heavy, 

 flapping, etc. ; disposition, restless, quiet, stupid, shy, tame, 

 unsuspicious. 



Food and how procured (if this can be observed with certainty ; often it 

 cannot be determined). 



Song: chirp, trill, twitter, melody, scream, hoot, etc., describe as nearly 

 as possible. 



Nest : place, ground, bush, tree, hole, limb, twig ; 

 placed how, saddled, pensile, in fork, etc. ; 

 materials, grass, moss, feathers, hair, twigs, etc. ; 

 eggs, number and color. 



The more of these points that are determined the surer will 

 be the identification, but often one or two of them will suffice 

 to identify a bird. The secret is to seize on the really distinc- 

 tive mark, whether of habit, voice, or color. A note " walks 

 head downward down tree-trunks " surely means a nuthatch ; 

 " tail with yellow band across tip" means the cherry bird, even 

 if there is nothing more said or seen about the bird. 



Always write the notes while the bird is before you. Use 

 your own code of abbreviations. Whatever is doubtful write, 

 but mark it by a sign of interrogation in parentheses follow- 

 ing, thus : " crested (?)." Whatever is absolutely certain, if 

 either strange or apparently important, mark with an exclama- 

 tion point not enclosed in marks, thus : " crested (?), a band of 

 yellow across the tip of tail ! small vermilion spots apparently 

 on rump ! " There is no doubt here that the cedar waxwing 

 has been seen, and that the bird must have had a crest. 



CEBTAIN QUESTIONS ANSWERED. 



There are a few questions so sure to come up that they may 

 as well be answered now. 



Do I think a school might own a few mounted birds? I do 

 not see why it might not. A few well-chosen, well-mounted 



