Every evening, Wilmington daily commercial., 1920-06-23
Banding the Birds
BY Frederic ]. Hnskln.

1 III tgs sottlDDiTflf Nlio lpi,t I'D fs'fs1ssbf
| and other ornithologists at the bureau
are confident Of obtaining results Of the
| greatest importance and interest.
The method by which this study II 70
be carried on IL that of banding the birds
that is, catching them in traps, making q
record OF species, age, sex and places of
| capture, then placing band with num-
| bcr and address on 1t about a leg Of each
| bird and releasing IL again. When this bird
| is recaptured, or in the case Of game
| bird, perhaps killed, something is learned
| OF its travels and habits and the length Of
| its life. When one bird is caught repeated
| ly or when n number Of birds OF certain
| species have been caught, great deal may
! be learned about the habits Of that kind Of
| bird The information so gained, especial
| lv thnt about the travels Of the birds,
| will be of the greatest practical value in
the making of regulations and interna-
| tional treaties under the imnigratory bird
| law which hae given such wonderful re-
| suits in the increase of migratory birds.
| II is known, for example, that many birds
| travel from North America to South
| America and 10 the West Indies, md II IS
/ expected, when more information about
| these migrants has been gained by trap,
| ping, TO make treaties with these nations
| similar 10 that which we now have with
| Canada, for the protection OF tn ese birds.
STUDY OF HABITS IMPo RTANT.
But the immediate and practical value
of the studies is the smallest part Of their
interest TO the scientists They say that as
the work progresses and the number Of
birds under observation increases, nurner-
ous facts will be discovered about their
habits which cannot now be forecast.
The science of ornithology heretofore has
been engaged largely in the preliminary
| work Of identifying and classifying the
birds Little systematic study has been
gwen to their habits. The work of elasslfi-
cation was Of course necessary, but only
as preliminary 10 the study Of bird habits.
II is this latter study which really increases
the value Of birds to man, by teaching him
how to protect those that are of value and
get rid Of those that are not. The inn
portance to man of two great groups OF
birds--those that destroy insects and these
that furnish food and sport---can scarcely
be overestimated, and it IS these that will
be studied first
This bird banding is not an experiment.
II has been carried on in Europe for about
twenty wears and in the United States for
at least half that long by the American
Bird Banding Association, the work Of
taken over by the United States Govern
ment. The Biological Survey Is now asking
for volunteers to help carry on the work,
and anyone who Is interested should get
in touch with that bureau. The survey will
furnish the bands and instructions how 70
trap, handle and band the birds, but
the expense of the work must be borne
by the individual. The Survey hopes to
establish strings of trapping station"
across and up and down the country so
that it will get reports from all sections.
Persons who live in the country or IN the
suburbs, who are interested IN birds, and
| who know by sight the varieties OF birds
in their own neighborhoods are qualified
for the work. In other words YOU must be
pretty good amateur ornlthologist 70
do this work, and you must have the
patience to carry it on for long period
of time in order TO get valuable results.
II you are willing and able 70 do this, you
have now an opportunity TO make real
contribution to science.
rAIrHLEss wRENs.
The methods of bird trapping have been
perfected, and some remarkable results
already obtained by members of the
American Bird Banding Association.
Special credit is due TO ;. Prentlss Bald
win, wealthy man who has one country
place in Ohio and another in Georgia.
and who has carried on bird banding opera
tions at both OF these places for a number
of wears DR. Oberholser calls Baldwin
wo,k the greatest contribution TO the
method of study in ornIthology which
has been made in the last thirty years, and
Baldwin, work is an inspiring example OF
a man OF leisure taking up science as
hobby and doing original work IN 1t OF
high order.
Limits of space will not permit of de-
tailed account of Baldwlns work, but
some of the results he has obtained may
| be Tecounted to show how little is actually
known about the habits of birds, and
| how this method of exact study gets at
| the truth. Birds, for example, have often
| been cited as examples of oon!ugal at
| fection. The male and female work to-
gether to build the nest and raise the brood,
| and it has been said of many species that
| each bird sticks to the same mate year
after year This beautiful legend may be
true of some buds, but Mr. Baldwin dem
onstrated that it is not altogether true
of wrens He banded pair of nesting
wrens on his Georgia place and later IN
the season captured both of them again.
Each of the wlens had at that time taken
a new mate and was engaged IN raising
a new family.
One of the questions that has long
| puzzled oTnithologlsts Is whether birds
travel each year the same routes IN their
migrations, and spend the winters and
summers in the same places Mr.. Baldwin
| found this to be exactly true of certain
species The same white-throatcd spar
rows came year after year To his place IN
Georgia, spending successive winters not
only in the same vicinity, but literally
about the same bush.
BIRDS HAVE CHARACTER
Mr.. Baldwin used IN his operations the
government sparrow trap, which INJURIES
| the bird very little or not at all and he
found that they were not badly frightened
by beng captured. Many birds were cap
tllred again and again, and some OF them
even insisted on spending most OF their
time IN the trap where there was plenty
| of food. He was surprised TO find how
much individual character the birds had.
Thus one sparrow which he captured re-
| peatedly he came to know as a tighter.
| 1t would always peck and bite at him with
great courage and ferocity when he took
il in his hand But another bird of the
same species showed an equally consistent
character as squealer, never offering
to fight but always lifting up its ice IN
loud lamentations.
Baldwin also established to his satisfac-
tion the fact that migrating birds do not