What constitutes a Museum Collection of Birds ? 149 



characteristics of the bird-life of the season. As a guide to 

 such a collection an annotated list of the birds known to 

 occur in the region may be published, which will be of value 

 in the field, study, or exhibition hall. 



Useful adjuncts to this students' collection have been found 

 to be exhibits of feet, wings, bills, tails, and feathers, designed 

 to illustrate ternis used in descriptive ornithology, together 

 with a list of standard books on ornithology, their prices and 

 publishers. A library containing the books mentioned should 

 be available for the students' use. 



If the Class Aves has not already been treated in a general 

 Synoptic Collection, here might be placed such an admirable 

 " Index " collection as is contained in the Central Hall of the 

 British Museum in Cromwell Road, where the general struc- 

 ture of birds, both internal and external, and their special 

 characters are displayed in a manner which may well be 

 emulated. The educational value of Synoptic exhibits of this 

 nature is so out of proportion to the space and material they 

 require, that they should have a place in the exhibition hall 

 of every Natural History Museum. 



Systematic Collections. 



Still attending to the wants of the student and teacher, 

 next in importance to the local collection, from which may be 

 gained assistance of a practical, personal nature, is a system- 

 atic collection, representing only the leading types of birds, 

 living' and extinct. The smaller this collection can be made, 

 without omitting well-marked forms, the more readily will 

 it convey an idea of the limits of variation in the Class Aves, 

 and the relationships of birds as shown by classification. 



When essential to a clear demonstration of taxonomic 

 characters, mounted skeletons should be exhibited, but it is 

 believed that, as a whole, osteological material should be con- 

 signed to a department of Comparative Anatomy. 



Labels for this systematic collection may consist of (1) 

 Species label, giving a scientific and vernacular name. The 

 latter should preferably be the one in common use in the 

 country where the bird is best known ; if such does not exist, 

 a name which has been published may be employed ; failing 



