FLAN OF THE BOOK 
to enable the bird to be recognised in the hand. Technical 
terms have been avoided as far as possible. 
The total length and wing measurement are also given 
but for no other puqiose than that the reader may form a 
rough idea as to the size of the bird. The total length, or 
merely "length" as we have sometimes called it, is the measure- 
ment between the tip of the bill and the end of tail-feathers, 
the bird beinfi- placed on its breast and gently pulled out 
straight without undue s tret thing. The wing measurement 
(in the following pages both measurements are giv^en very 
approximately) is the length of the closed wing from * 'elbow*' 
(really "wrist") to wing tip when pressed against a flat ruler. 
By memorising the measurements of a few conunon European 
birds, the reader should be able to %'isualize the size of any 
of the birds mentioned hereafter not forgetting that a long 
bill as in the snipe, or a long tail as in the common pheasant, 
does much to increase the total length. Likewise the relative 
length of the wing is Subject to a certain, although by no 
means as great, variation and two birds of similar bulk may 
have the lengths of their wings rather different. 
Let the reader call to mind some common British birds. 
Take for instance some of the weil-knovvn finches^ the sparrow, 
greenfinch, bullfinch and Urmei. By reference to a book on 
British birds he will find that of these Six species the total 
length is from 5 to 6 inches and that the wing ranges from 
2.85 to 3.2 inches. 
It will then be seen that these measurements are a good 
guide to the size of the bird. Anything smaller than the 
figures just quoted will reduce the species to something like 
wren or titmouse si^e. 
We quote a few * 'handy sizes" of well-known British 
birds and the reader can find up plenty of others for himself 
by reference to almost any book on birds. The figures given 
below in all cases refer to the total length in inches and the 
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