Iowa state bystander. [volume] (Des Moines, Iowa) 1894-1916, 1913-11-21
PREMATURE BUR|ALs HAVE THEIR ZONES
Birds Stay in Their Own Part;.u
lar Territory.
Prot. Chapman Has Classified Tn.
From Sea Level to Top Of And.. '"
Those Of Bright plun,,.
Are Of the Forest AIon.

1t seems a strange set of fac,, a.
Prof. Frank M. Chapman of tho s suas
lean Museums staff is preparirn n'el'
bring out through exhibits OF Nv
which he made captive at differor. "u'
titudes in Colombia, South Amerio, Af
Beginning at the sea he tracad -
bird life all the way up the Ans. '
mountains to the snow line wboro
life in any form was found eyist.N
and, after doing one side of the mnns
tain range. he investigated the o,h.s'
His adventures now permit him =.
make a map Of the zones Of bird ~.
in the tropics, and in doing It he 'fra M.
much that surprises even himself
From sea level to an altituda :.
5000 feet he found the shore Mia.
none OF them higher. From Som :,
5000 feet he found other bird fam,l,e.
none from the shore or from the ,o,.
above, and these families never 40,
higher than 5000 feet, nor lower th,,
5000 above sea level. Still h,oh.,
up, from 5000 to $4,000 feet, he founa
other distinctive forms of bird m.
related in no way to those below ana
never SO far as he could see crossin,
the line Of their own territory to tbs
dead region above or the stranps
country below inhabited by birds mn
of their kind.
Everywhere birds Of bright plumasa
are birds of the forest alone, but IN
this South American country the fact
is accumulated. On the coast and in
the bare~lands back of It. the birds
are like our swallows, gray or near y
but in the great timber country m
the sides of the Andes the gayest q,
colors and most glorious of stripes and
spots are found. /,
Nature is kind to the birds in the
coats it gives them. Like the wild
flowers. the birds are brightest where
they cannot be reached By the sea
and in the open fields where ruthless
hands may be turned against them.
dull colors are the rule, making Il
harder to see them, harder to hunt
them.
Rather curiously. though, Professor
Chapman has evidence that the birds
of Colombia went there in many IN.
stances to remain in their fixed zones,
not by their own volition, but away
back, a few million years ago, maybe,
they were driven on and on by the
polar ice caps until they found safe.
ty zone where they could pick a liv.
ing and keep warm. according to the
conditions Of climate and tempera.
ture to which they we're most accus
toned, and so he finds here change
in types of the same species. a
For example, on the east side Of the
mountain there is a yellow bird,
beauty, with a blue head. Fully
grown. it Is as big as robin On
the other side of the mountain it has
a white head. 1t is not as good look.
ing as the other one. The character
istics hold for the entire families on
either side of the mountain.
It must be remembered here that
the birds couldn't cross the mountain
now or ever in their history, for the
end Of the life zone is 10000 feet and
the elevation here is $4,000 feet, H.
900 feet being the perpetual snow
line.
Professor Chapman assumes, there
FORE. that this species got separated
at the coast in it's migration, one sec
ton coming up one side OF the noun
tain and another going up the other
side to remain forever apart, an I'M
penetrable and unsurmountable wall
between them, living as they dc. now
in the attitudes between 5000 anu
5000 feet in the thick forest. They
won't go down and they can't 90 up
to be reunited. And, besides, they
have changed their spots. y