Collecting
Killing a bird with the intention of preserving its skin as a specimen. Although collecting had its place in the past, today it is made unnecessary by the existence of adequate museum collections, so that reference material no longer need be acquired, and by the development of improved optical aids and field techniques, so that the bird in the hand is seldom required for identification. Indeed, under the bird protection laws, killing of most species is now illegal in the British Isles.From Peter Weaver's Birdwatcher's Dictionary
Copyright © 1981 by Peter Weaver