
48 - REGISTRATION AND LABELLING. 
juv. (juvenis, young). “‘ Nupt.” signifies breeding plumage; Ne 
““hornot.” means a bird of the year. 9. Measurements of 
length, and of extent of wings; the former can only be ob- 
tained approximately, and the latter not at all, from a prepared 
specimen. 10. Color of the eyes, and of the bill, feet, or other 
naked or soft parts, the tints of which may change in drying. 
11. Miscellaneous particulars, such as contents of stomach, 
special circumstances of capture, vernacular name, etc. 12. 
Scientific name of the bird. ‘This is really the least important 
item of all, though generally thought to take precedence. But 
a bird labels itself, so to speak; and nature’s label may be 
deciphered at any time. In fact, I would enjoin upon the col- 
lector not to write out the supposed name of the bird in the 
field, unless the species is so well known as to be absolutely 
unquestionable. Proper identification, in any case to which 
the slightest doubt may attach, can only be made after critical 
study in the closet with ample facilities for examination and 
comparison. The first eight items, and the twelfth, usually 
constitute the face of a label; the rest are commonly written 
on the back. Labels should be of light card-board, or very 
stiff writing paper; they may be dressed attractively, as fancy 
suggests; the general items of a large number of specimens 
are best printed; the special ones must of course be written. 
Shape is immaterial; small ‘ cards” or ‘tickets ” are preferred 
by some, and certainly look very well when neatly appointed ; 
but I think on the whole, that a shape answering the idea of a 
“slip” rather than a ‘‘ticket” is most eligible. A slip about 
three inches long and two-thirds of an inch wide will do very 
well for anything, from a hawk toa humming-bird. Something 
like the *‘ shipping tags” used by merchants is excellent, par- 
ticularly for larger objects. It seems most natural to attach 
the string to the left-hand end. The slip should be tied so as 
to swing just clear of the bird’s legs, but not loose enough to 
dangle several inches, for in that case the labels are continually 
tangling with each other when the birds are laid away in 
drawers. The following diagrams show the face and back 
of the last label I happened to write; they represent the 
