Marking Birds by Imping Feathers

Abstract

another bird of the same species so that the splice cannot be detected. If colored feathers are used they will show up well in any part of the tail or wings, best, of course, in centrals or deck feathers of the tail, so that individuals may be easily recognized. Only strong white feathers, such as the tail and secondaries of white chickens and the wing coverts of white turkeys and geese, should be used for markers. They may be colored with Diamond wool dye to obtain any number of color combinations. For the best results feathers should be thoroughly washed and rinsed, and then rinsed again in vinegar water, then boiled for fifteen minutes in the dye. The imping needles are easily prepared by grinding ordinary sewing needles on a fine power emery stone. The needle is placed in a pin vise and ground to as long a taper as possible on three sides; then reverse the needle and repeat the grinding as illustrated in Figure lb. The size of the needle will, of