1887-1888 - American Museum of Natural History

15
this purpose of moth-proof tin cans, about 125 of which have
been ordered. One-half of them have been received and are
already in use. They give entire satisfaction, rendering every
specimen easily accessible, and affording perfect protection against
dust and insect pests, thus insuring the perfect preservation of
the specimens.
The additions to the collection have been wholly unprecedented.
In addition to the collections already mentioned, 2,235
specimens have been received from Dr. E. A. Mearns, U. S. A., collected
in Arizona; about I50 have been purchased; 2I9 have
been collected by Mr. Richardson; 67 were obtained by the Museum
Expedition; 6o have been received by donation from various
sources ; and about 250 have been purchased, including 76 mounted
birds, for the North American collection. A further addition,
worthy of special note, is a skeleton of the Great Auk, recently
received as a gift from the United States National Museum. IThe
total additions number about 21,000 bird skins, of which 200
are mounted; about 6oo birds' eggs, with many nests, mostly
South American; about 300 sterna, and 12 skeletons. About 300
birds previouslv in the collection have been remounted and placed
on exhibition, making about 5oo mounted birds added to the exhibition
series during the year.
The total number of birds now belonging to the Museum may
be safely placed at about 39,000. (Adding Mr. Sennett's collection,
of about 5,ooo specimens, the total number of birds now in
the Museum is about 44,000.) 'Ihe collection of nests and eggs is
second in size and importance to that of the United States
National Museum, numbering about 20,000 specimens. Mr.
Sennett's collection, equally available for use, contains about
7,000, making our resources in this department equal to about
27,000 specimens.
In the last report attention was called to the need of the further
increase of the North American Study Collection of birds.
Notwithstanding the many additions of the present year, this part
of the collection has been very little improved, and about io,000
specimens should be added to it in order to give it a creditable
standing in comparison with similar collections in other museums.
This matter may be considered as now especially urgent, since an
opportunity is open to the friends of the Museum to purchase,
ready at hand, a collection which would not only admirably meet
this deficiency, but give the American Museum unquestionably
the first place, as regards its ornithological department, among
the museums of this country-a position it can never take while
this defect remains.
The reception and care of the large accessions has prevented
much progress in cataloguing and labeling the collections, which
work, however, has been continued at every opportunity.