It is also important to Icnow just what insects a "bird eats. Are the 

 insects they eat the ones that d.ainsi^Q crops, or gardens or trees? There 

 are all sorts of ramifications to an investigation of "birds. You can make 

 your investigations just as simple or just as complete as you care to. Anjt- 

 way you do it you can get a lot of real onjoynejit from finding out first 

 hand about the birds around you. 



Of course, one of the first things to note about the bird is where 

 it lives. Tliat is, whether it lives on the uplands, or on the water, or 

 along the border of streams, or slouglis, or lalcos. Does it frequent grain 

 fields, or woods, or meadows. 



Daring the nesting season, you will, of course, want to look in on 

 the home life of the birds. Make a note of the day you observe the birds 

 building a nest, and the materials used. Does this particular bird build 

 its nest in a tree or in a shrub? Does tliis other bird build on the ground 

 or in the grass. However, Dr. Bell warns that in studying the nesting 

 habits, be careful not to frigliten the parent birds or injure the nest eggs. 

 Never handle the eggs. 



We could go on indefinitely malcing suggestions as to things to ob- 

 serve about birds. But once you get interested in birds, your own desire 

 to know will suggest plenty of things to you. 



And there is probably no necessity to suggest to radio listeners 

 that they tune in on the music of birds. Your note books will probably 

 have plenty of facLnating facts that, literally speaking, the "little birds 

 have told you. " 



You will not only learn to recognize the different birds by their 

 notes and calls, but I venture to say you will try to imitate the various 

 songs, and cries, and call*-notes, and notes of alarm, and scolding, and so 

 forth, before you have gone very far. 



If the same bird has different songs for different times of the day 

 or seasons of the year, you will soon detect that fact when you begin to 

 get well acquainted with them. You will note when they sing, and where they 

 sing. If a bird sings or chatters wMle feeding, that fact will be recorded 

 among the other facts about that bitd. 



In that way, Dr. Bell assures mo, you will soon learn to -understand 

 and interpret more fully the so\mds and miisic you have been accustomed to 

 hear in your rambles through the fields and woods Just a moment, now 



Listenl Do you hoar that? The birds are calling you, 



AN".,01II'IC EI£SNT; You have just heard a few suggestions on getting better ac- 

 quainted with the birds. Tiiis program has come to you from the United 

 States Department of Agriculture, Two weeks from today v/e will again be 

 with Uncle Sam* s Naturalists. 



