24 Handbook of Taxidettny. 



a cylinder of each hand, gently coax the skin 

 through, until it is of the required shape. Then 

 place it in a drying-rack, made by bending a 

 piece of zinc or tin into a half cylinder. Leave 

 it to dry for a few days. Many collectors never 

 mount birds, but prefer " made skins." These 

 may be relaxed at any time by wrapping in 

 damp cotton for a few days, and then set up as 

 directed. 



SEX 



May be determined by cutting through the ribs 

 under the right wing, and pushing away the in- 

 testines. There, bound to the small of the back, 

 will be seen the testicles of the male — two 

 spheroidal, whitish bodies, which vary in size 

 according to the season of the year. In the 

 female will be seen the ovaries, a flattened mass 

 of whitish bodies. These are often so minute as 

 to defy the naked eye, and the inquirer is obliged 

 to employ the microscope to make the distinction. 

 The sign recognized by ornithologists all over 

 the world is $ for males, and 9 for females j 

 to which is added for young birds the Latin 



