Mar., 1922 FROM FIELD AND STUDY 569 
As the sizes of the young were apparently the same and no other duck with young 
was seen in the vicinity, we naturally assumed these were the missing two from the 
fiock. After photographing, we returned these two to the small pond occupied by the 
female and it was noted that the female immediately began pecking at the two new ar- 
rivals. Upon a later observation of the group, we found that the female had only six 
young, instead of eight, she evidently having driven the two young away from the flock. 
At least two explanations are possible regarding the occurrence of these two small 
young. They may have been separated from their own brood and joined the flock in 
which we found them, or it is possible Merganser eggs were deposited in the nest of 
the Buffle-head and hatched. The latter explanation seems the more probabie to us on 
account of the juveniles corresponding in size with the others. It is not uncommon to 
find eggs of different varieties of ground-nesting ducks in the same nest and, no doubt, 
the same holds true of tree-nesting varieties as well. 
Regarding the occurrence of the male Buffle-head, this bird was flushed from the 
bay before we were aware of the presence of the female and young. The male returned 
and was flushed at least twice thereafter from this small bay, and while he showed no 
particular solicitation for the young, it seemed obvious that he was the parent bird. In 
any event, he showed a decided preference for the small section of water occupied by 
the female and young.—JULES LAaBARTHE, San Francisco, February 6, 1922. 
EDITORIAL NOTES AND NEWS 
The award of the Brewster Memorial 
Medal for 1920-21 has been made by the Am- 
erican Ornithologists’ Union to Robert Ridg- 
way in recognition of his successful labors 
on the “Birds of North and Middle America.” 
Every ornithologist will heartily approve of 
the decision of the committee in charge of 
the award, that volume vill of this great 
work was the most meritorious publication 
on the birds of America which appeared 
during the last two-year period. 
On January 17, 1922, in response to an in- 
vitation from Mr. Charles L. Whittle, Mr. L. 
B. Fletcher, and others interested in the 
banding of birds, over 100 persons met at 
the Boston Society of Natural History Build- 
ing in Boston and organized a new ornitho- 
logical society to be known as the New Eng- 
land Bird Banding Association. The meet- 
ing was addressed by Mr. S. Prentiss Bald- 
win, of Cleveland, who during the last six 
years, by introducing bird-trapping as a 
means of banding birds, has done so much 
to show the scientific possibilities of the 
work. The Bureau of Biological Survey was 
represented by Mr. EK. A. Goldman who spoke 
of the Bureau’s plans in connection with the 
movement, strongly endorsing the organiza- 
tion of the new association and recommend- 
ing the formation of other organizations of 
the same character at appropriate localities 
in the United States and Canada. Over 300 
members are already enrolled in the new 
organization. 
It is becoming increasingly incumbent up- 
on active workers in any field of science to 
keep up with the times. Each one of us 
must know the literature appearing in his 
field. An indispensable aid to every serious 
worker is the Zoological Record, published 
by the Zoological Society of London (Reg- 
ent’s Park). Mr. W. L. Sclater is editor of 
the ‘‘Aves” portion, the annual subscription 
to which is seven shillings six pence. The 
publication of the Zoological Record has been 
continuous throughout the war period, ow- 
ing to local provision. But now, with great- 
ly increased printing costs, it can be con- 
tinued on the same plane of completeness 
only with outside support as well. It is a 
cooperative enterprise; hence the propriety 
of this suggestion that each Condor reader 
who is also a serious student in ornithology 
contribute to its maintenance by subscrib- 
ing, at least to the extent intimated above. 
The department of zoology of the Field 
Museum of Natural History, Chicago, has 
been completely reorganized under the direc- 
tion of Dr. Wilfred H. Osgood, Curator of 
that department. In the division of birds, 
Dr. C. E. Hellmayr has been secured as As- 
sociate Curator, Mr. John T. Zimmer as As- 
sistant Curator, Mr. Colin Sanborn as As- 
sistant, and Mr. Boardman Conover as Asso- 
ciate. In the division of birds’ eggs Mr. R. 
M. Barnes is Assistant Curator. In the divi- 
sion of mammals Mr. Edmund Heller has 
been made Assistant Curator. Messrs. Hel- 
ler and Zimmer are about to leave for an 
extended period of vertebrate collecting in 
Peru. 
Mr. A. S. Kibbe has recently made some 
comments in The Gull (organ of the Audu- 
bon Association of the Pacific) anent bird 
trapping and banding which to our minds 
deserve serious consideration. He _ says: 
“Trapping is not a diversion nor a spas- 
