12 
ORNITHOLOGIST 
[Vol. (i-No. 2 
ORNITHOLOGIST OOLOGIST. 
A MONTHLY MAOAZINK DKVOTKD TO TIIK STUDY 
OF niKDS. TllKlU NKSTS AND K(i<;S. 
JOS. M. WADE. - - - . EiUtiir 
S. L. WILLABB. - - - .IssV Editor 
With thc> co-operation of al)le Ornitliolofrical 
Writers anil Coliectors. 
$1.0D per niiniiiik. ID cents single copy. 
Aililress 
JOS. ^f. WADE, 
Kockville, Conn. 
Preparing Eggs— Some time af^o some 
one inquired for somethinf^ to prevent in¬ 
sects infesting and destroying eggs. Jiidg 
ing from our own collection at the time we 
could not understand how the smallest in¬ 
sect could live in a collection of eggs any 
more than they could in a case of new vials, 
but since then we have done some exchang¬ 
ing with various collectors and have been 
surprised to see the specimens some other¬ 
wise good oologists will send out. Fresh 
eggs with holes an eighth of an inch in 
diameter and some even larger. Some have 
large holes but well cleaned—others have 
even part of the yolk adliering to the out¬ 
side of the shell ; these are the kind in 
which the insects hold high carnival, and 
even if they were prevented from gaining 
an entrance, the eggs turn black and com¬ 
mence to decay from the time they are 
placed in the (Cabinet. Another class of 
collectors will jilace on the egg with 2 )en 
and ink the full record of the find; these 
eggs for neat collectors are almost ruined, 
others will place all of a kind in the same 
box, having no regard for sets ; in this 
way many valuable sets are lost to sci¬ 
ence. Single egg collections are worthless 
except as artitdes of curiosity. 
When the find is made, if the collector 
has time at his disposal, he should fully ob¬ 
serve the habits of the birds, enough cer¬ 
tainly to identify the species. If this can 
not be done, a little bird lime jiroperly 
used will very soon jilace (he birds in his 
2 )ower for examination : only ns a last re¬ 
source would we advise the shooting of the 
birds. Before the nest is taken, the inter 
nal measurements should be made, its ma¬ 
terial noted as well as the location. We 
never clean eggs in the held, always reserv¬ 
ing them lor evening work, when they are 
carefully drilled with the smallest drill 
{lossible ; then with the Ellsworth blower, 
described by Dr. William Wood, we jiro- 
ceed to remove the contents, when each 
siiecimen is jilaced in a jian of warm water 
until the set is comjilete, when they are 
thoroughly washed inside and out. even 
the moisture being blown out. A record 
is then made on a small slij) of paper and 
{ilaced in the Cabinet with the eggs. No 
mark being made on the shell, the drill 
hole is also so small, that it is hardly no¬ 
ticeable. The Smithsonian and collector's 
numbers may be juit on the shell with a 
clear soft pencil that can be easily washed 
off should the eggs change hands, or anew 
edition of the check list aiipear. 
-- 
European Sky Lark.s.— ‘We have receiv¬ 
ed an invitation from H. Hales of Ridge¬ 
wood. N. J. to \Tsit that place and see a 
large lot of Sky Larks jirevious to their 
being liberated the coming Siiring. It 
ajqiears that “with the assistance of Purser 
Kinzey of the steamship City of Rich¬ 
mond. Mr. Isaiu" W. England secured 200 
of these birds in England. Twenty-five 
died on the passage. The others arrived 
in New York on the Kith of last Decem¬ 
ber. About fifty of the birds escaped 
from the cage while they were on their 
way to Mr. England's farm at Ridgewood, 
N. J. By the 17th of December their 
number had been reduced to lOd. On 
that day Mr. Hales took charge of 
them. All were very weak. Over twenty 
died. The others recovered their strength. 
They are kept in an aiiartment twelve feet 
square, well lighted, warmed, and venti’.- 
.itcd. The door is well sanded, and they 
can have a dust bath whenever they want 
it. The floor is partly sodded, and the\ 
have a new grass ]ilot weekly. 
This snbjwt opens a wide field for the 
lover of rural ])nrsuits. To what more 
