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THE NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC MAGAZINE 



1 



PALMER S THRASHER AT NEST IN CH0LLA CACTUS : ARIZONA 



With the issuance of this book came 

 the opening to public inspection of the 

 completed Habitat Groups of North 

 American Birds at the American Museum 

 of Natural History, in New York. And 

 these two events seem indissolubly con- 

 nected, for it is beyond the limits of 

 practicability to collect the material for 

 such a book except in cooperation with 

 the field work of some great museum, nor 

 is it possible to appreciate the labors in- 

 volved in the establishment of these re- 

 markable Habitat Groups without read- 



ing the narrative of the many trips made 

 to various portions of our continent in 

 collecting the material. 



While it may be true that the high de- 

 gree of realism and artistic effect of this 

 modern method of taxidermy can only 

 be appreciated by a visit to the museum 

 in question, yet one can get a very fair 

 idea of the beauty of these groups from 

 the half-tone reproductions in Mr Chap- 

 man's book, and, on the other hand, a 

 life history of these birds can only be 

 understood and appreciated through Mr 



