MAMMALS AND BIRDS 
upon the organization of the new Museum, they were presented to the 
Trustees by Mr. Cooper. The specimen was mounted in the Arsenal 
and first exhibited in 1883. 
Before the mammals and birds were transferred from the Arsenal 
to the new building early in 1878, there were many additions, principally 
the mounted specimen of the extinct great auk, the gift of Mr. Robert 
L. Stuart in 1870, a collection of birds' nests given by the Smithsonian 
Institution in 1874, and 11,000 skins of North American birds presented 
in 1875 by Dr. Daniel G. Elliot. 
After the new building (north wing) was opened, the collection of 
mammals and birds was constantly enlarged by various gifts. 
Several mounted mammals, among them an elk, a moose, tapir, 
camel, and an ostrich, which had been exhibited at the Centennial Ward 
Exhibition in Philadelphia, were purchased by a number of the Trustees conlcti!>n' 
and presented to the Museum in 1878. They were considered to $i,896. 
represent the finest taxidermy of the time, and formed one of the 
chief attractions to the Museum in the early days. 
The first material for study collections was given by Dr. E. A. Beginning 
Mearns in 1882, consisting of skins and eggs of North American and coikctllns. 
European birds. 
The gift of Mrs. Robert L. Stuart made possible the series of 37 
groups showing the nesting habits of our native birds, the first of First Bird 
which were exhibited in 1887. The Museum is also indebted to Mrs. Mammar'^ 
Stuart for the series of groups of the smaller species of mammals found Groups, 
within the vicinity of New York. 
A valuable collection of humming birds, numbering 2,000 speci- Eiiiot 
mens and representing 400 species, was the gift of Dr. Daniel G. Elliot Humming 
in 1887. That same year Dr. E. A. Mearns presented 2,235 specimens Bh-ds^^ 
of birds collected in Arizona. Collection. 
The Snowden Howland Collection of Eggs of North American snowden 
Birds, numbering 3,000, was the gift of Mr. Clarence King in 1889. cmL. 
Another collection received in 1889 was that of a number of mam- Bridgman 
mals and birds and a small collection of eggs and nests from South Collection. 
Africa, collected by Dr. B. N. Bridgman and presented by Mr. D. 
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