Bird Work at Wellesley College 55 



make it as far as possible a veritable paradise for birds. We try, 

 therefore, not only to keep them, but also to make the grounds even 

 more attractive than nature formed them. The edict has gone forth 

 that all cats walking upon the grounds do so at their own peril. 

 Red squirrels and English sparrows are made to feel at times that 

 a price is set upon their heads. A generous friend has given in the 

 last two years a large number of bird-attracting trees, which have 

 been set out in some of the favorite resorts. Holes in one of the 

 large barns will offer a home for Swallows, and bird houses, it is 

 hoped, will attract those whose eyes are open for the sign, 

 'To Let.' On one or two spots stand shelters where, especially in 

 the winter, the birds may find food, these shelters answering the 

 purpose of the • soup kitchens ' in our large cities. There exist, in 

 addition, numerous private charitable enterprises, which have in 

 many cases made the recipients quite tame. 



It is comparatively easy to arouse enthusiasm on this subject, 

 but the rub comes in adding to it definite knowledge and the spirit 

 of thoughtfulness. The lack of these elements is what makes the 

 bird -faddist.' It is all very well to wax eloquent over the Bluebird 

 and the Chickadee, but it must be somewhat dampening to enthusi- 

 asm not to know a Bluebird from a Bluejay or a Chickadee from a 

 Nuthatch. The same difficulties beset bird study at Wellesley which 

 we meet in the study of general biology, and which probably exist 

 in the study of any subject anywhere, — namely, indefiniteness, whether 

 in observation or in knowledge, and thoughtlessness as to what is 

 seen. 



There is no absolute remedy for these defects, but they may be 

 reduced to a minimum by directing carefully and rather minutely the 

 observations, and by insisting constantly upon accurate results. After 

 the ordinary methods, both in the field and in the laboratory, any 

 device which will secure the desired end is welcome, especially if it 

 brings in variety. The little game of guessing a bird by a descrip- 

 tion of its markings or structure or habits, or the reverse of this, 

 guessing b}' the 'twenty-question' method, is admirable, for it requires 

 as much ready knowledge in a college girl as it does in primary 

 • children. This year the field notes will include answers to a posted 

 set of questions, dealing with the structure and habits and relations 

 of some of our common representatives. These questions will serve 

 the double purpose of showing the student how to work, and of 

 igivmg her definite, tangible material for the understanding of some 

 of the more general subjects of interest in ornithology. Each student, 

 moreover, will ' adopt ' one bird, to study it fully, in its structure, 

 .its habits, its nesting, its food, its song, and its relation to its own 



