ORNITHOLOGY. The department of science which treats of birds, their characteristics, their form, structure, habits and uses is called ornitho logy ; from two Greek words signifying, a bird, and discourse. To the fanner, the study is of great importance as enabling him to distinguish between birds useful, those whose benefit is not counterbalanced by the injury they accomplish, and those decidedly injurious. Thus the horti culturist would narrow down his list of beneficial birds to a far greater extent than the grain far mer. The florist would find very few birds doing him injury, and the grass farmer or grazier almost none, if any. Agricultural ornithology may therefore very properly be considered out side of ornithology proper, since the rural popu lation are especially interested in birds useful and injurious. These will be treated of under their proper names--which see—at least those of more special importance. In this connection we present a list of the more common birds of the country ranging from the lakes to Kentucky as the north and south lines. Further south our summer birds are, many of them, there, winter birds. The list was most carefully prepared by E. Michener, M.D., Pennsylvania, for the Depart ment of Agriculture at Washington, and we believe has never appeared in print outside the Government report. It is the most condensed and complete catalogue of these classes we have found. A system of classification has been adopted with the names of the families, genera, and species. Immediately after will be found the common or familiar names. It is convenient
to designate the species as, Constant residents; some portion, at least, of which remain nearly or throughout the year. Summer residents; greater or less numbers of which spend the summer, nest and breed. Winter residents; mostly north ern species, which spend the whole or part of the winter. lligratory; those birds which pass and repass in spring and autumn. Wan dering ; birds which migrate irregularly, wherever their food may be most abundant. The reader will no doubt find many seeming exceptions to these divisions; for instance, the turkey vulture mostly migrates further south in winter, yet it has been seen_ in midwinter, when the mercury was below zero, striving with a crow for the pos session of a dead mouse, Birds are also either Carnivorous: fiesh-eaters—vultures, hawks, etc.
Piscivorous: fish-eaters—kingfishers, herons, etc. Insectivorous: insect-eaters—woodpeckers, fly catchers,etc. Granivorous: grain-eaters—pigeons, sparrows, etc. Omnivorous: all-eaters—crows, blackbirds, etc. These terms are even more exceptional than the preceding ones. In a vari able climate, or where the species migrates from warm summer to cold winter regions, or the con trary, its food must often valy with the season, etc. Hence, both as regards residence and food, the terms are only the expression of a general fact, and have, of course, only a relative applica tion. Of land birds we have: