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5. Accidental or stragglers from remote districts (AV). 
It is desirable also to indicate the relative abundance of the different 
species, the terms to be employed for this purpose being : Abundant, Com¬ 
mon, Tolerably Common, Rare. 
If yon are in a position to observe the lines of flight of birds, have you 
noticed whether or not such lines are influenced by the topography of the 
country, and if so, to what extent? 
If a mountain intercepts the line of flight, what kinds of birds pass 
around it, and what kinds pass over it ? 
What localities in your neighborhood are sought as resting-places by 
the various kinds of migrating birds? Can you give any reason for this 
selection ? 
What kinds of birds generally move in flocks, and what kinds in pairs 
or singly ? 
Are you familiar with any kinds of birds in which the males and fe¬ 
males, and old and young, fly in separate flocks? In many species the 
males arrive in advance of the females, hence it is important to note the 
sex of the first comers, and the date at which the opposite sex is first seen. 
Have you observed from year to year any increase or decrease in the 
numbers of any kind of bird known to you? If so, do you attribute such 
change to altered conditions in the bird’s breeding grounds? If not, can 
you assign a cause ? 
Have you observed the increase or decrease of one species to affect the 
numbers of another species. If so, can you explain the fact? 
Has any kind disappeared altogether, and if so, can you assign a cause 
for this disappearance? 
Among the birds which are now common about your station is there 
any hind that was formerly rare or absent? If so, can you explain the 
fact? 
Among the birds which breed regularly in your vicinity have you ever 
observed an individual which by some personal peculiarity (such as the 
presence of white or dark feathers where they do not belong, or by some 
deformity) could readily be distinguished from others of its kind? If so, 
has this bird returned to the same place'to nest year after year? 
In recording arrivals and departures it is highly important to distin¬ 
guish the movements of irregular stragglers, of the advance guard or 
“van,” and of the principal mass or “bulk” of the species. For this pur¬ 
pose observers are requested to note : 
1. When the species is first seen. 
2. When it is next seen. 
