tee bt) Ue BeOONG@e Bb? Ul de hata N 5 
banded one of my first cardinals. It bit my hand and I could not get it 
loose. As I did not want to release the bird without a band, I had to call 
a neighbor to pry the bill open. 
There are noticeable variations in size and weight of the same 
species. Although only a fraction of an inch or a few grams, the differences 
are equivalent to normal variations in human bodies. Last week, I banded 
a blue jay with a tarsus so small that it could easily have taken a band 
a full size smaller than the one designed for jays. In April I trapped 
a giant white-crowned sparrow almost as large as a diminutive starling 
I banded the same day. 
Occasional abnormalities are seen in trapped birds, although one case 
I noticed could have been seen by a field observer. It was an adult slate- 
colored junco which might have been called a “sharp-tailed’” junco. 
The outer tail feathers had the normal white color, but were about half 
the length of the central feathers, which formed the point of a perfectly 
V-shaped tail. Except for length, all feathers appeared normal and no 
shafts were broken. . 
There is something intriguing about the bright eyes of a bird in the 
hand, and at times the bill or feet, but I am always fascinated with the 
feathers. Upon close inspection, they reveal subtle color patterns that could 
not be seen at a distance of ten feet. The tiny coverts at the bend of 
the wing on the white-throated sparrow show a small, delicate yellow patch, 
and it is always possible to see the buff band, be it ever so faint, on 
the breast of the Lincoln’s sparrow. Most wonderful of all, though, is the 
marvelous way that each feather by size and structure is adapted to its 
function. 
This, however, is not a topic for discussion by an amateur. It is a subject 
which should make a paper most interesting to every reader of the Bulletin. 
If you approve, Mr. Editor, I would suggest William Beecher as one of 
your possible “candidates” for such a project. 
Editor’s Note: How about it, Bill? 809 Michigan Ave., Evanston, Ill. 
a ai ft 
Back Numbers Available 
CURRENT IssuES of the Audubon Bulletin, as well as back numbers, may 
be purchased before and after the “Screen Tours” near the entrance 
to the James Simpson Theater of the Chicago Natural History Museum. 
(The first lecture, by the way, will be on Sunday, October 26, at 2:00 
p. m.) The most recent issue of the Bulletin is 15c, while older numbers 
sell for 10c a copy. Many members take advantage of this service to 
obtain back numbers which are of special interest to them. 
Provision has now been made for downstate members and nature study 
groups to obtain back numbers on the same basis. Recent issues of the 
Bulletin may be purchased by mail, in lots of 20 or more of a given 
number. This makes the Bulletin available to bird clubs, teachers, scout 
leaders, garden clubs, and so on, both in and out of Chicago, in large 
quantities at a cost less than that for printing. The price, in lots of 20 or 
more, is 15¢ per copy. Orders and inquiries should be addressed to the 
Illinois Audubon Society, Roosevelt Road and Lake Shore Drive, Chicago 
5, Illinois. 
