45 



In the spring of 1885 Dr. 0. Hart Merriain, chairman of the Commit- 

 tee on Migration of the American Ornithologists' Union, prepared and 

 sent out blank schedules for the use of the observers in reporting their 

 notes. A copy (on a reduced scale) of the heading of one of these 

 schedules is here given : 



1885. 

 American Ornithologists' Union. 



INLAND DIVISION. 



COMMITTEE ON BIRD MIGRATION. 



BIRDS OBSERVED AT STATION. 



Number of station, , Name of station, 



Name and P. 0. address of observer, 



Name of bird. 



"When was 



it first seen, 



and 

 about how 

 many were 

 observed ? 



When 



When 



When 



Is it 



Does 



was it 



did it 



was it 



common 



it breed 



next 



become 



last 



or 



near your 



seen? 



common ? 



seen? 



rare? 



station ] 













Remarks. 



On the back of the schedules the following " Instructions" were 

 printed : 



INSTRUCTIONS. 



In the first column should he stated the exact date when each kind of hird was 

 first seen. This entry should he made on the day the bird arrives — not from memory 

 afterwards (general statements, such as "late in March," "early in April," etc., are 

 of no value). The number observed (approximate) should also be recorded. 



In the second column should be stated the date when the same kind of bird was 

 next seen — whether this happens on the very next day, the next week, or not till a 

 month later. 



In the third column should be stated the date when the bird becomes common. 

 Some birds come in a body and are common from the day of their first arrival, while 

 others straggle along and are not common for a month or more ; and others still are 

 never common. 



In the fourth column should be stated the last date when the bird was observed. 

 In the spring migration this column will remain vacant in those species which breed 

 in the neighborhood, as it can be filled only when all the individuals go north. In 

 the fall migration it should be filled in those species which pass farther south, but 

 must remain vacant in those which spend the winter in the vicinity of the station. 



In the fifth column should be stated whether the species is abundant, common, tol- 

 erably common, or rare. 



In the sixth column it is necessary only to say yes or no. 



Each schedule contained spaces for noting the movements of 3G spe- 

 cies of birds. 



In 1885, schedules relating to spring migration were received from 

 87 observers, distributed as follows: One in Mississippi, 12 in Illinois, 

 16 in Wisconsin, 1 in Louisiana, 6 in Missouri, 19 in Iowa, II in Minne- 

 sota, 5 in Texas, 4 in Kansas, 2 in Nebraska, 6 in Dakota, and 4 in Man- 



