74 
IOWA BIRD LIFE— XI, 194 L 
cause the old-timer trouble at times. One should, therefore, employ 
every reasonable means available for accurate identification if there 
seems to be any doubt, rn this connection be prepared to take any 
desirable notes on the spot. A good field guide should also be used 
freely. Never forget that a mistaken identity will go on record as fact. 
In your enthusiasm to see a rare species which you would very much 
like to see, do not cease to maintain a scientific attitude. 
Records. Many of the field notes will be taken under difficulty. It 
will, therefore, be an advantage to develop an efficient system of re- 
cording the birds as seen. The experts do not agree on which is the 
best method. Some prefer a pocket notebook in which each species 
is entered as seen and additional counts added so that the total for 
any species is always the last figure entered. Others use only a printed 
check list such as is prepared by the Iowa Ornithologists' Union and 
is obtainable at one-half cent each. The ncortl is the important thing, 
not the method. 
If any unfamiliar species cannot be identified on the spot, brief 
notes about its size, color, markings, call notes and habitat should be 
made at the time, not left to the memory. 
Publication. After your list has been compiled you will want to 
share it with others. Send it to the editor of ‘Audubon Magazine,’ 
first reading carefully the instructions and rules which they have set 
forth. The as prepared for them will also be accepted by ‘Iowa 
Bird Lite.’ \ou will enjoy comparing your census figures with others 
throughout the stale. The editor of ‘Iowa Bird Life' has made com- 
parison easy for us by preparing a table which shows the tabulated 
results of all the reports. 
Reward. If, by careful search and stealthy stalking, you overtake 
a flock of Pine Siskins, you need no further reward for that search. 
Or if, like the writer, you have gone many times in search of fertile 
biid fields and on the census hike flush 40 Cardinals from your favorite 
thicket, you have a picture which will never fade and you may go re- 
peatedly to that same spot with the hope that some day you may see 
45 Cardinals, 
In case it has been possible for you to maintain one or move bird 
feeding-stations, you will surely want to check on these, although it 
is not likely that any rare species will be thus added unelss quad or 
pheasants are uncommon in your area. 
Should your list be small, you may have to be satisfied with knowing 
that at least you portrayed the bird population as you found it, and did 
not fall victim to blind competition for numbers by stulTing the records 
with what just might have been a rare specimen but which you honestly 
r el t was doubtful. 
It often happens that the records of many census-takers contain 
some errors and not a few species which just couldn’t be found. So if 
you are not a recognized authority on Iowa birds, try to take it like 
a true sportsman if the editor (who must often perform his painful 
duty) decides to call it an out ’ and leaves \ our pet rare species off 
the list. 
GENERAL NOTES 
Records from McGregor, — Duck Hawks were sighted frequently in 
the Pikes Peak region in 1941, A Red-breasted Nuthatch was ob- 
served on September 10, 1941, at Pike's Peak. Next dav an adult male 
Bald Ea^Ie was seen. Approximately 30 American Egrets were ob- 
served along the Mississippi on the morning of September 11, 1940, 
and a flight of about 40 Bro^d-winged Hawks was observed on Sep- 
tember 20.— GLENN R. DOWNING and FRED HUEBSCH, JR„ Mc- 
Gregor, Iowa, 
