Jean M. Linsdale

A Method of Showing Relative Frequency of Occurrence of Birds

By JEAN M. LINSDALE F IELD ORNITHOLOGISTS are probably unanimous in holding the opinion that it is desirable to express the results of their studies in a more exact form than has been done, generally, in the past. *However, in spite of the general agreement that the results of field investigation should be so presented as to command analysis on a basis comparable with those of some other branches of science, ornithologists have, so far, made too little progress in this direction. The reasons for this apparent neglect of an opportunity to progress in field ornithology are obvious to all persons who have even a slight experience in the field study of birds. Even if it be granted that it is at present impracticable to attempt to reduce all field observations to a mathematical basis, it seems that some phases of the field study of birds could be, and should be, made more useful by more quantitative methods. It is particularly necessary that some attention be given to developing methods whereby the relative frequencies of occurrence of bird species in a given unit of habitat may be expressed in such a way as to be intelligible and at the same time comparable with the results of similar studies in other localities. It is the purpose of the present paper to illustrate the application of a method for expressing the relative frequency of birds, which proved to be useful in analyzing the results of certain local surveys of birds. With slight modification this procedure

Bird Life in Nevada with Reference to Modifications in Structure and Behavior

Fisher, A. K. 1893. Report on the ornithology of the Death Valley expedition of 1891, comprising notes on the bff observed in southern California, southern Nevada, and parts of Arizona nd Utah. North Amer. Fauna No. 7, pp. 7-158. Fremont, J. C. 1845. Report of the exploring expedition to the Rocky Mountains fn the year 1842, and to Oregon and north California in the years 1843-‘44. (Washington, Gales and Seaton, printers), 693 pp., 22 pls., 5 maps. Goodwin, S. H. 190.5. About the Utah gull. Condor, vol. 6, pp. 99-100. Henshaw, H. W. 1874~. An annotated list of the birds of Utah. Ann. Lyceum Nat. Hist. of N. Y., vol. 11, pp. l-14. 1874b.An annotated list of the birds of Utah. Rept. upon ornithological specimens collected in the years 1871, 1872, and 1873. Geog. and Geol. Expl. and Surv. West 100th Mer., George M. Wheeler. Pp. 39-54. 1875. Report upon the ornithological collections made in portions of Nevada, Utah, California, Colorado, New Mexico, and Arizona during the years 1871, 1872,1873, and 1874, by H. W. Hensbaw. Rept. Geog. and Geol. Expl. and Surv. West 100th Mer. by George M. Wheeler. Vol. 5, pp. 131-507,977-989, pls. I-15. 1919. Autobiographical notes. Condor, vol. 21, pp. 177-181. Merriam, C. H. 1873. Report on the mammals and birds of the expedition. [Hayden’s, of 1872, which surveyed portions of Montana, Idaho, Wyoming and Utah]. Sixth Ann. Rept. U. S. Geol. Surv. Terr. for 1872, 1873. Pp. 661-715. Nelson, E. W. 1875. Notes on the ornithology of Utah, Nevada and California. Proc. Boston Sot. Nat. Hist., vol. 17, pp. 338-365. Ridgway, R. 1873. Notes on the bird-fauna of the Salt Lake Valley and the adjacent portions of the Wahsatch Mountains. Bull. Essex Inst., vol. 5, pp. 168-173. 1874-1875. Lists of birds observed at various localities contiguous to the Central Pacific Railroad, from Sacramento City, California, to Salt Lake City, Utah. Bull. Essex Inst., vol. 6, pp. 169-174; vol. 7, pp. l&24, 30-40. 1877. Ornithology, in “Ornithology and Palaeontology,” U. S. Geol. Expl. Fortieth Parallel, vol. 4, part 3, pp. 303-669. 1882. Descriptions of some new North American birds. Proc. U. S. Nat. Mus., vol. J, pp. 343-346. Yarrow, H. C., and Henshaw, H. W. 1874. Report upon and list of birds collected by the expedition for explorations west of the one hundredth meridian in 1872 ; Lieut. Geo. M. Wheeler, in charge. Rept. upon omit,t&ogical specimens collected in the years 1871, 1872, and 1873. Geog. and Geol. Expl. and Surv. West 100th Mer., George M. Wheeler. Pp. S-38.

The Nesting Season of Birds in Doniphan County, Kansas

The analysis of the nesting season of birds near Oroville, California, by Mr. W. B. Davis, in this issue of the CONDOR (pp. 151-4) has prompted me to place on record a comparable lot of information dealing with the same subject in another part of the United States, namely, near the townsite of Geary, Doniphan County, Kansas. Various features of the latter survey have already been reported upon as follows:

Work with Vertebrate Animals on the Hastings Natural History Reservation

Opportunity came, in 1937, to the Museum of Vertebrate Zoology of the University of California, to undertake a kind of museum work new for it and to extend the scope of its program by establishing a field station. Here, many of the procedures and ideas resulting from the previous thirty years of its development might be applied and tested more intensively and possibly more effectively than by the conventianal methods of exploration in the field. Without in any way relaxing the pursuit of studies already in progress over a larger area, it was desirable to concentrate on the development of a continuous record of biotic changes on some restricted sample of ground.