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diff --git a/old/62696-h/62696-h.htm b/old/62696-h/62696-h.htm deleted file mode 100644 index 8dc23d2..0000000 --- a/old/62696-h/62696-h.htm +++ /dev/null @@ -1,2978 +0,0 @@ -<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Strict//EN" - "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-strict.dtd"> -<html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en"> - <head> - <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html;charset=iso-8859-1" /> - <meta http-equiv="Content-Style-Type" content="text/css" /> - <title> - USDA Farmers' Bulletin 630: Some Common Birds Useful to the Farmer, by Henry W. Henshaw, a Project Gutenberg eBook. - </title> - <link rel="cover" href="images/cover_epub.jpg" /> - <style type="text/css"> - -body {margin-left: 10%; margin-right: 10%;} - -p {margin-top: .75em; text-align: justify; - margin-bottom: .75em; text-indent: 1.5em;} - -hr {width: 33%; margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em; - margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; clear: both;} - -hr.chap {width: 65%; margin-top: 2em;} -hr.tb {width: 45%;} - -table {margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; border-collapse: collapse;} -.tblcont tr:hover {background-color: #f5f5f5;} - -.pagenum {position: absolute; right: 3.5%; font-style: normal; /* prevent italics, etc. */ - font-size: small; text-align: right; color: #808080;} /* page numbers */ - -.smcap {font-variant: small-caps;} -.center {text-align: center; margin:0; text-indent: 0;} -.smaller {font-size: 0.8em;} -.tdl {text-align: left;} -.tdr {text-align: right;} -.p0 {text-indent: 0;} -h1, h2, .caption2 {font-weight: bold; text-align: center; text-indent:0;} -h1 {font-size:2.00em; margin-top: 1.5em;} -h2, .caption2 {font-size:1.50em; margin-top: 1.0em;} -.pmb2 {margin-bottom: 2em;} -.pmt2 {margin-top: 2em;} - -/* Images */ - -.fig_center {margin: auto; text-align: center;} - -.fig_left {float: left; clear: left; margin-left: 0; - margin-bottom: 1em; margin-top: 1em; - margin-right: 1em; padding: 0; text-align: center;} - -.fig_right {float: right; clear: right; margin-left: 1em; - margin-bottom: 1em; margin-top: 1em; - margin-right: 0; padding: 0; text-align: center;} - -.fig_caption {font-size: 0.8em; margin-bottom: 1em; - margin-left: 2em; text-indent: -2em; text-align: justify;} - -.blockquot p {margin-left: 2em; text-indent: -2em; text-align: justify;} - -/* Transcriber's notes */ -.trans_notes {background-color: #e6e6fa; color: black; padding:1.5em; - margin-bottom:5em;} - -/* Footnotes */ -.footnote {margin-left: 10%; margin-right: 10%; font-size: 0.9em;} -.footnote .label {position: absolute; right: 84%; text-align: right;} -.fnanchor {vertical-align: super; font-size: .8em; text-decoration: none;} - - </style> - </head> -<body> - - -<pre> - -The Project Gutenberg EBook of USDA Farmers' Bulletin No. 630 (1915 -edition), by F. E. Beal - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and most -other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions -whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of -the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at -www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you'll have -to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this ebook. - -Title: USDA Farmers' Bulletin No. 630 (1915 edition) - Some Common Birds Useful to the Farmer - -Author: F. E. Beal - -Release Date: July 19, 2020 [EBook #62696] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1 - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK USDA FARMERS' BULLETIN NO. 630 (1915) *** - - - - -Produced by Tom Cosmas - - - - - -</pre> - - - - - - -<div class="fig_center" style="width: 266px;"> -<img src="images/cover.png" width="266" height="460" alt="" /> -</div> - - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_1" id="Page_1">« 1 »</a></span></p> - -<div class="fig_center" style="border: double #000 5px; width: 530px; padding: 12px;"> -<img src="images/title_banner.png" width="530" height="171" alt="" /> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<h1>SOME COMMON BIRDS<br />USEFUL TO THE FARMER.</h1> - -<h2 class="pmb2">By <span class="smcap">F. E. L. Beal</span>, <i>Assistant Biologist</i>.</h2> - - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p class="p0"><span class="smcap">Note.</span>—The habitat, food habits, and economic relation to agriculture of more than 50 -birds common to farming sections are discussed in this bulletin. It supersedes Farmers’ -Bulletin 54.</p> -</div> - -<p class="center smaller pmt2 pmb2">U.S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE Farmers’ Bulletin 630<br /> -<br /> -Contribution from the Bureau of Biological Survey, Henry W. Henshaw, Chief.<br /> -February 13, 1915.</p> - - -<hr class="chap" /> -<h2><a name="CONTENTS" id="CONTENTS">CONTENTS.</a></h2> - -<table class="tblcont" style="width: 450px;" summary="TOC"> -<tr> - <td></td> - <td class="smaller tdr">Page.</td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdl">The bluebirds</td> - <td class="tdr"><a href="#THE_BLUEBIRDS">2</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdl">The robins</td> - <td class="tdr"><a href="#THE_ROBINS">3</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdl">The titmice</td> - <td class="tdr"><a href="#THE_TITMICE">4</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdl">The wrens</td> - <td class="tdr"><a href="#THE_WRENS">6</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdl">Brown thrasher</td> - <td class="tdr"><a href="#BROWN_THRASHER">7</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdl">Catbird</td> - <td class="tdr"><a href="#CATBIRD">7</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdl">The swallows</td> - <td class="tdr"><a href="#THE_SWALLOWS">8</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdl">Towhee</td> - <td class="tdr"><a href="#TOWHEE">9</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdl">The sparrows</td> - <td class="tdr"><a href="#THE_SPARROWS">9</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdl">House finch</td> - <td class="tdr"><a href="#HOUSE_FINCH">11</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdl">The grackles</td> - <td class="tdr"><a href="#THE_GRACKLES">12</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdl">Brewer blackbird</td> - <td class="tdr"><a href="#BREWER_BLACKBIRD">12</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdl">Baltimore oriole</td> - <td class="tdr"><a href="#BALTIMORE_ORIOLE">13</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdl">Bullock oriole</td> - <td class="tdr"><a href="#BULLOCK_ORIOLE">14</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdl">The meadowlarks</td> - <td class="tdr"><a href="#THE_MEADOWLARKS">14</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdl">The red-winged blackbirds</td> - <td class="tdr"><a href="#THE_RED-WINGED_BLACKBIRDS">15</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdl">Bobolink</td> - <td class="tdr"><a href="#BOBOLINK">17</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdl">Crow</td> - <td class="tdr"><a href="#CROW">17</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdl">Blue jay</td> - <td class="tdr"><a href="#BLUE_JAY">19</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdl">Pacific coast jays</td> - <td class="tdr"><a href="#PACIFIC_COAST_JAYS">20</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdl">The phœbes</td> - <td class="tdr"><a href="#THE_PHOEBES">21</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdl">The kingbirds</td> - <td class="tdr"><a href="#THE_KINGBIRDS">23</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdl">Nighthawk</td> - <td class="tdr"><a href="#NIGHTHAWK">24</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdl">The woodpeckers</td> - <td class="tdr"><a href="#THE_WOODPECKERS">25</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> - <td class="tdl">The cuckoos</td> - <td class="tdr"><a href="#THE_CUCKOOS">27</a></td> -</tr> -</table> - - - - -<h2><a name="INTRODUCTION" id="INTRODUCTION">INTRODUCTION.</a></h2> - - -<p>Whether a bird is beneficial or injurious depends almost entirely upon what -it eats. In the case of species which are very abundant, or which feed to some -extent on the crops of the farmer, the question of their average diet becomes -one of supreme importance, and only by stomach examination can it be satisfactorily -solved. Field observations are at best but fragmentary and inconclusive -and lead to no final results. Birds are often accused of eating this or -that product of cultivation, when an examination of the stomachs shows the -accusation to be unfounded. Accordingly, the Biological Survey has conducted -for some years past a systematic investigation of the food of those species which -are most common about the farm and garden.</p> - -<p>Within certain limits birds eat the kind of food that is most accessible, especially -when their natural food is scarce or wanting. Thus they sometimes injure -the crops of the farmer who has unintentionally destroyed their natural food -in his improvement of swamp or pasture. Most of the damage done by birds -and complained of by farmers and fruit growers arises from this very cause. -The berry-bearing shrubs and seed-bearing weeds have been cleared away, and -the birds have no recourse but to attack the cultivated grain or fruit which have -replaced their natural food supply. The great majority of land birds subsist -upon insects during the period of nesting and moulting, and also feed their -young upon them during the first few weeks. Many species live almost entirely -upon insects, taking vegetable food only when other subsistence fails. It is -thus evident that in the course of a year birds destroy an incalculable number -of insects, and it is difficult to overestimate the value of their services in restraining -the great tide of insect life.</p> - -<p>In winter, in the northern part of the country, insects become scarce or -entirely disappear. Many species of birds, however, remain during the cold -<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_2" id="Page_2">« 2 »</a></span> -season and are able to maintain bike by eating vegetable food, as the seeds of -weeds. Here again is another useful function of birds in destroying these weed -seeds and thereby lessening the growth of the next year.</p> - -<p>In the following pages are discussed the food habits of more than 50 birds -belonging to 12 families. Many are eastern forms which are represented in -the West by slightly different species or subspecies, but unless the food habits -differ they are not separately described. In some cases specific percentages of -food are given, but for the most part the statements are made without direct -reference to the data on which they are based.<a name="FNanchor_1" id="FNanchor_1"></a><a href="#Footnote_1" class="fnanchor">[1]</a></p> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_1" id="Footnote_1"></a><a href="#FNanchor_1"><span class="label">[1]</span></a> Farmers’ Bulletins describing the food habits of wild birds and groups of birds, or -presenting methods of attracting them about our homes have been issued as follows: -</p> - -<div class="blockquot"> - -<p> 54. Some Common Birds in their Relation to Agriculture, by F. E. L. - Beal, 1897. The present bulletin is largely a revision of this - bulletin and supersedes it.</p> - -<p>383. How to Destroy English Sparrows, by Ned Dearborn, 1910. This - bulletin has been superseded by Farmers’ Bulletin 493.</p> - -<p>450. Our Grosbeaks and Their Relation to Agriculture, by W. L. - McAtee, 1911.</p> - -<p>493. The English Sparrow as a Pest, by Ned Dearborn, 1912.</p> - -<p>497. Some Common Game, Aquatic, and Rapacious Birds in Relation to - Man, by W. L. McAtee and F. E. L. Beal, 1912.</p> - -<p>506. Food of Some Well-known Birds of Forest, Farm, and Garden, by - F. E. L. Beal and W. L. McAtee, 1912.</p> - -<p>513. Fifty Common Birds of Farm and Orchard, prepared under the - direction of Henry W. Henshaw, 1913. This bulletin was issued - with illustrations in color, and the demand for it was so - enormous that it is no longer available for free distribution. - Copies may be had for 15 cents (postage stamps not accepted) of - the Superintendent of Documents, Government Printing Office.</p> - -<p>609. Bird Houses and How to Build Them, by Ned Dearborn, 1914.</p> - -<p>621. How to Attract Birds in Northeastern United States, by W. L. - McAtee, 1914.</p> - -</div> - -</div> - -<p>The parts of this bulletin relating to the crow and blue jay were contributed -by E. R. Kalmbach, and the discussion of the nighthawk is by W. L. McAtee, -both of the Bureau of Biological Survey.</p> - - - -<hr class="chap" /> -<h2><a name="THE_BLUEBIRDS" id="THE_BLUEBIRDS">THE BLUEBIRDS.</a></h2> - - -<div class="fig_right" style="width: 286px;"> -<a id="fig1"></a><img src="images/fig1.png" width="286" height="244" alt="" /> -<div class="fig_caption"><span class="smcap">Fig. 1.</span>—Bluebird. Length, about 6½ inches.</div> -</div> - -<p>The eastern bluebird<a name="FNanchor_2" id="FNanchor_2"></a><a href="#Footnote_2" class="fnanchor">[2]</a> (<a href="#fig1">fig. 1</a>), one of the most familiar and welcome of our -feathered visitors, is a common inhabitant of all the States east of the Rocky -Mountains from the Gulf of Mexico to southern Canada. In the Mississippi -Valley it winters as far north as southern Illinois, and in the East as far as -Pennsylvania. It is one of the earliest northern migrants, and everywhere is -hailed as a harbinger of spring. Very domestic in habits, it frequents orchards -and gardens, and builds its nests in -cavities of trees, crannies in farm -buildings, or boxes provided for its -use.</p> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_2" id="Footnote_2"></a><a href="#FNanchor_2"><span class="label">[2]</span></a> <i>Sialia sialis.</i></p></div> - -<p>The bluebird has not been accused, -so far as known, of stealing -fruit or of preying upon crops. An -examination of 855 stomachs showed -that 68 per cent of the food consists -of insects and their allies, while the -other 32 per cent is made up of -various vegetable substances, found -mostly in stomachs taken in winter. -Beetles constitute 21 per cent of the -whole food, grasshoppers 22, caterpillars 10, and various other insects -9, while a number of spiders and -myriapods, about 6 per cent, comprise -the remainder of the animal -diet. All these are more or less -harmful, except a few predacious beetles, which amount to 9 per cent. In view -of the large consumption of grasshoppers and caterpillars we may at least condone -this offense, if such it may be called. The destruction of grasshoppers is -very noticeable in August and September, when these insects make up about 53 -per cent of the diet.</p> - -<p>It is evident that in the selection of its food the bluebird is governed more -by abundance than by choice. Predacious beetles are eaten in spring, as they -are among the first insects to appear; but in early summer caterpillars form an -important part of the diet, and these are later replaced by grasshoppers. Beetles -are eaten at all times, except when grasshoppers are more easily obtained.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_3" id="Page_3">« 3 »</a></span></p> - -<p>So far as its vegetable food is concerned the bluebird is positively harmless. -The only trace of any useful product in the stomachs consisted of a few blackberry -seeds, and even these probably belonged to wild rather than cultivated -varieties. Following is a list of the various seeds which were found: Blackberry, -chokeberry, juniperberry, pokeberry, partridgeberry, greenbrier, Virginia -creeper, bittersweet, holly, strawberry bush, false spikenard, wild sarsaparilla, -sumac (several species), rose haws, sorrel, ragweed, grass, and asparagus. This -list shows how little the bluebird depends upon the farm or garden to supply -its needs and how easily, by encouraging the growth of some of these plants, -many of which are highly ornamental, the bird may be induced to make its -home on the premises.</p> - -<p>Two species of bluebirds inhabit the Western States—the mountain bluebird<a name="FNanchor_3" id="FNanchor_3"></a><a href="#Footnote_3" class="fnanchor">[3]</a> -and the western bluebird.<a name="FNanchor_4" id="FNanchor_4"></a><a href="#Footnote_4" class="fnanchor">[4]</a> In their food habits they are even more to be commended -than their eastern relative. Their insect food is obtainable at all -times of the year, and the general diet varies only in the fall, when some fruit, -principally elderberries, is eaten, though an occasional blackberry or grape is -also relished. In an examination of 217 stomachs of the western bluebird, animal -matter (insects and spiders) was found to the extent of 82 per cent and -vegetable matter to the extent of 18 per cent. The bulk of the former consists -of bugs, grasshoppers, and caterpillars. Grasshoppers, when they can be obtained, -are eaten freely during the whole season. Caterpillars also are a -favorite food and are eaten during every month of the year; March is the month -of greatest consumption, with 50 per cent, and the average for the year is 20 -per cent. Two stomachs taken in January contained 64 and 50 per cent, respectively, -of caterpillars. Beetles also -are eaten and comprise mostly -harmful species.</p> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_3" id="Footnote_3"></a><a href="#FNanchor_3"><span class="label">[3]</span></a> <i>Sialia currucoides.</i></p> - -<p><a name="Footnote_4" id="Footnote_4"></a><a href="#FNanchor_4"><span class="label">[4]</span></a> <i>Sialia mexicana subspecies.</i></p></div> - -<p>The vegetable matter consists of -weed seeds and small fruits. In December -a few grapes are eaten, but -elderberries are the favorites whenever -they can be found. It is only -when these are in their greatest -abundance that vegetable exceeds -animal food.</p> - - - -<hr class="chap" /> -<h2><a name="THE_ROBINS" id="THE_ROBINS">THE ROBINS.</a></h2> - - -<div class="fig_right" style="width: 287px;"> -<a id="fig2"></a><img src="images/fig2.png" width="287" height="181" alt="" /> -<div class="fig_caption"><span class="smcap">Fig. 2.</span>—Robin. Length, about 10 inches.</div> -</div> - -<p>The robin<a name="FNanchor_5" id="FNanchor_5"></a><a href="#Footnote_5" class="fnanchor">[5]</a> (<a href="#fig2">fig. 2</a>), in many parts -of the country one of the most cherished -of our birds, is found throughout the States east of the Great Plains, -and is represented farther west and south by slightly different subspecies.<a name="FNanchor_6" id="FNanchor_6"></a><a href="#Footnote_6" class="fnanchor">[6]</a>,<a name="FNanchor_7" id="FNanchor_7"></a><a href="#Footnote_7" class="fnanchor">[7]</a> It -breeds far north through Canada, and is found even in Alaska. Although the -great bulk of the species leaves the Northern States in winter, a few individuals -remain in sheltered swamps, where wild berries furnish abundant food. The -robin is an omnivorous feeder and its food habits have sometimes caused apprehension -to the fruit grower, for it is fond of cherries and other small fruits, -particularly the earlier varieties. For this reason many complaints have been -lodged against the bird, and some persons have even gone so far as to condemn -it. It is, however, far too valuable to be exterminated, and choice fruit can be -readily protected from its depredations.</p> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_5" id="Footnote_5"></a><a href="#FNanchor_5"><span class="label">[5]</span></a> <i>Planesticus migratorius.</i></p> - -<p><a name="Footnote_6" id="Footnote_6"></a><a href="#FNanchor_6"><span class="label">[6]</span></a> <i>Planesticus migratorius propinquus.</i></p> - -<p><a name="Footnote_7" id="Footnote_7"></a><a href="#FNanchor_7"><span class="label">[7]</span></a> <i>Planesticus migratorius achrusterus.</i></p></div> - -<p>Examinations of 1,236 stomachs show that 42 per cent of its food is animal -matter, principally insects, while the remainder is made up largely of small -fruits or berries. Over 16 per cent consists of beetles, about one-third of which -are useful ground beetles, taken mostly in spring and fall when other insects -are scarce. Grasshoppers make up about 5 per cent of the whole food, but in -August they comprise 17 per cent. Caterpillars form about 9 per cent, while -the rest of the animal food, about 11 per cent, is made up of various insects, -with a few spiders, snails, and angleworms. All the grasshoppers, caterpillars, -and bugs, with a large portion of the beetles, are injurious, and it is safe to -say that noxious insects comprise more than one-third of the robin’s food.</p> - -<p>Vegetable food forms 58 per cent of the stomach contents, over 42 per cent -being wild fruits and only a little more than 8 per cent being possibly cultivated -varieties. Cultivated fruit amounting to about 25 per cent was found in -<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_4" id="Page_4">« 4 »</a></span> -the stomachs in June and July, but only a trifle in August. Wild fruit, on the -contrary, is eaten every month and constitutes a staple food during half the -year. No less than 65 species of fruit were identified in the stomachs; of these, -the most important were 4 species of dogwood, 3 of wild cherries, 3 of wild -grapes, 4 of greenbrier, 2 of holly, 2 of elder; and cranberries, huckleberries, -blueberries, barberries, service berries, hackberries, and persimmons; together -with 4 species of sumac and various other seeds not strictly fruit.</p> - -<p>The depredations of the robin seem to be confined to the smaller and earlier -fruits, few, if any, complaints being made that it eats apples, peaches, pears, -grapes, or even late cherries. By the time these are ripe the forests and hedges -are teeming with wild fruits which the bird evidently finds more to its taste. -The cherry, unfortunately for man, ripens so early that it is almost the only -fruit accessible at a time when the bird’s appetite has been sharpened by a -long-continued diet of insects, earthworms, and dried berries, and it is no -wonder that at first the rich juicy morsels are greedily eaten.</p> - -<p>While the robin takes some cultivated fruits, it must be remembered that, -being a natural enemy of the insect world, it has been working during the -whole season to make that crop a possibility, and when the fruit ripens the -robin already has a standing account with the farmer for services rendered, -with the credits up to this time entirely on his side.</p> - -<p>Since the robin takes ten times as much wild as cultivated fruit, it seems -unwise to destroy the birds to save so little. Nor is this necessary, for with -care both birds and fruit may be preserved. Where much fruit is grown it is -no great loss to give up one tree to the birds, and in some cases the crop can -be protected by scarecrows. Where wild fruit is not abundant, a few fruit-bearing -shrubs and vines judiciously planted will serve for ornament and -provide food for the birds. The Russian mulberry is a vigorous grower and a -profuse bearer, ripening at the same time as the cherry. So far as observation -has gone, most birds seem to prefer its fruit to any other. It is believed that -a number of mulberry trees planted around the garden or orchard would fully -protect the more valuable fruits.</p> - -<p>Much has been written about the delicate discrimination of birds for choice -fruit and their selection of only the finest and costliest varieties. This is contrary -to observed facts. Birds, unlike human beings, seem to prefer fruit that, -like the mulberry, is sweetly insipid, or that, like the chokecherry or holly, -has some astringent or bitter quality. The so-called black alder, a species of -holly, has bright scarlet berries tasting as bitter as quinine, that ripen late in -October and remain on the bushes through November. Though frost grapes, -the fruit of the Virginia creeper, and several species of dogwood are abundant -at the same time, the birds have been found to eat the berries of the holly to -a considerable extent. It is, moreover, a remarkable fact that the wild fruits -upon which birds largely feed are those which man neither gathers for his -own use nor adopts for cultivation.</p> - - - -<hr class="chap" /> -<h2><a name="THE_TITMICE" id="THE_TITMICE">THE TITMICE.</a></h2> - - -<p>Birds of the titmouse family, though insignificant in size, are far from being -so in the matter of food habits. What they lack in size of body they more than -make up in numbers of individuals. While in the case of some larger birds, as, -for instance, the flicker, there is one pair of eyes to look for food for one large -stomach, we have in the case of the ten times as numerous titmice an equivalent -stomach capacity divided into 10 parts, each furnished with a pair of eyes and -other accessories, as wings and feet. As against the one place occupied by the -larger bird, 10 are being searched for food at the same time by the smaller -species.</p> - -<p>The character of the food of titmice gives a peculiar value to their services, -for it consists largely of the small insects and their eggs that wholly escape -the search of larger birds. Throughout the year most of the species of this -group remain on their range, so that they are constantly engaged in their beneficial -work, continuing it in winter when the majority of their co-workers have -sought a milder clime. It is at this season that the titmice do their greatest -good, for when flying and crawling insects are no more to be found, the birds -must feed upon such species as they find hibernating in crevices, or upon the -eggs of insects laid in similar places. In winter’s dearth of moving insects -the search for such animal food as may be found is perforce thorough and -unremitting.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_5" id="Page_5">« 5 »</a></span></p> - -<p>Within the boundaries of the United States are some 17 species of titmice, -with nearly as many races or subspecies, so that there is no portion of the -country lacking one or more forms. The western coast region is peculiarly rich -in representatives of the family. In the eastern portion of the country the -best-known and most widely distributed species is the common black-capped -chickadee<a name="FNanchor_8" id="FNanchor_8"></a><a href="#Footnote_8" class="fnanchor">[8]</a> (<a href="#fig3">fig. 3</a>). This bird, or some of its subspecies, occupies the whole of -that part of the United States north of the latitude of Washington and extends -into Canada. It is a prolific breeder, usually rearing from six to eight young -in a brood.</p> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_8" id="Footnote_8"></a><a href="#FNanchor_8"><span class="label">[8]</span></a> <i>Penthestes atricapillus.</i></p></div> - -<div class="fig_right" style="width: 275px;"> -<a id="fig3"></a><img src="images/fig3.png" width="275" height="302" alt="" /> -<div class="fig_caption"><span class="smcap">Fig. 3.</span>—Black-capped chickadee. Length, -about 5¼ inches</div> -</div> - -<p>Examination of 289 stomachs of this chickadee shows that its food consists of -68 per cent animal matter (insects) and 32 per cent vegetable matter. The -former is made up of small caterpillars and moths and their eggs. Prominent -among the latter are the eggs of the tent-caterpillar moths, both the orchard -and forest species. As these are two of our most destructive insects, the good -done by the chickadee in devouring their eggs needs no comment. During the -winter the chickadee’s food is made up of larvæ, chrysalids, and eggs of moths, -varied by a few seeds, but as spring brings out hordes of flying, crawling, and -jumping insects, the bird varies its diet by taking also some of these. Flies and -bugs are the favorites until the weather becomes quite warm, when beetles and -small wasps also are enjoyed. Among the bugs may be mentioned the plant -lice and their eggs which are eaten -in winter. The beetles nearly all belong -to the group of snout beetles, -more commonly known as weevils. -These insects are mostly of small -size, and nearly all are known to the -farmer or fruit raiser as pests. Seventeen -of them were found in one -stomach. The plum curculio and the -cotton-boll weevil may be taken as -fair examples. Grasshoppers do not -at any time constitute an important -element of the food of the chickadee, -as they are too large for so small a -bird; moreover they are for the most -part terrestrial insects, while the -bird is essentially arboreal. Small -wasps and ants are eaten to some -extent. Spiders constitute an important -element of the food and are -eaten at all times of the year, the -birds locating them when they are -hibernating in winter, as well as -when they are active in summer. -The vegetable food of the chickadee -consists largely of small seeds except -in summer when they are replaced by pulp of wild fruit. The wax from the -seeds of poison ivy is eaten during the winter months, but the seeds themselves -are not taken. In this respect the chickadee differs from most other birds -which swallow the seeds whole; these, after digesting the wax, pass the seeds -through the alimentary canal, and so scatter them broadcast to reproduce the -noxious plants.</p> - -<p>In the southern part of the country the Carolina chickadee<a name="FNanchor_9" id="FNanchor_9"></a><a href="#Footnote_9" class="fnanchor">[9]</a> and the tufted tit<a name="FNanchor_10" id="FNanchor_10"></a><a href="#Footnote_10" class="fnanchor">[10]</a> -replace the black-cap, but their food habits are so similar that there is practically -no difference in the work done. In the West several other species occur; -one of the most interesting is the bush tit<a name="FNanchor_11" id="FNanchor_11"></a><a href="#Footnote_11" class="fnanchor">[11]</a> which, with several subspecies, -occupies the whole Pacific coast region. They are active, social little creatures, -and except for a short time during the breeding season are found in flocks, flitting -from tree to tree, busily hunting for insects and their eggs The contents -of 66 stomachs of these birds were found to consist mostly of injurious insects -to the extent of 83 per cent. Of these the most important was a small hemipterous -insect which amounted to more than half of the stomach contents. These -insects are of considerable economic importance, as they frequently infest grapevines -and other plants to a harmful extent. Several stomachs were almost -exclusively filled with these minute creatures, some containing as many as 100 -individuals.</p> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_9" id="Footnote_9"></a><a href="#FNanchor_9"><span class="label">[9]</span></a> <i>Penthestes carolinensis.</i></p> - -<p><a name="Footnote_10" id="Footnote_10"></a><a href="#FNanchor_10"><span class="label">[10]</span></a> <i>Bæolophus bicolor.</i></p> - -<p><a name="Footnote_11" id="Footnote_11"></a><a href="#FNanchor_11"><span class="label">[11]</span></a> <i>Psaltriparus minimus.</i></p> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_6" id="Page_6">« 6 »</a></span></p> - -<p>Perhaps the most important and interesting insect found was the black olive -scale, which occurred in 24 stomachs and amounted to a little more than 18 -per cent of the food. In addition a number of the stomachs were more or less -filled with another scale, which was not further identified. A number of small -snout beetles (weevils) were eaten and some small caterpillars; there were also -the remains of a spider.</p> - -<p>The vegetable food of the species seemed to consist mostly of seeds, but they -were so broken up as to defy recognition. A little fruit pulp and a little mast -were also found.</p> - -<p>Among the stomachs of the bush tits examined were those of one brood of -eight nestlings about 10 days old. The vegetable matter in these stomachs was -only three-fourths of 1 per cent and consisted of one seed and some rubbish. -The animal matter was made up of beetles, wasps, bugs, caterpillars and pupæ, -and spiders. The greatest interest lies in the fact that every one of these stomachs -contained pupæ of the codling moth, on an average of over five to each. -The oak tree in which these birds were found was in a belt of timber near a -neglected orchard which the parent birds used as a foraging ground, and they -did their best to remedy the neglect of the owner. As feeding and digestion -in the case of nestling birds is almost continuous during the hours of daylight, -the above record would be several times repeated during a day’s feeding. -There were probably not less than -a dozen nests of the bush tit along -the border of this orchard, and -these birds must have exerted a -great restrictive influence upon the -increase of the codling moth, as -well as of other insects in that -vicinity.</p> - - - -<hr class="chap" /> -<h2><a name="THE_WRENS" id="THE_WRENS">THE WRENS.</a></h2> - - -<div class="fig_right" style="width: 282px;"> -<a id="fig4"></a><img src="images/fig4.png" width="282" height="245" alt="" /> -<div class="fig_caption"><span class="smcap">Fig. 4.</span>—House wren. Length, about 4¾ inches.</div> -</div> - -<p>The diminutive house wren<a name="FNanchor_12" id="FNanchor_12"></a><a href="#Footnote_12" class="fnanchor">[12]</a> (<a href="#fig4">fig. 4</a>) frequents barns and gardens, -and particularly old orchards in -which the trees are partially decayed. He makes his nest in a -hollow where perhaps a woodpecker had a domicile the year -before, but he is a pugnacious character, -and if he happens to fancy -one of the boxes put up for bluebirds, -he does not hesitate to take it. He is usually not slow to avail himself -of boxes, gourds, tin cans, or empty jars placed for his accommodation.</p> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_12" id="Footnote_12"></a><a href="#FNanchor_12"><span class="label">[12]</span></a> <i>Troglodytes aëdon.</i></p></div> - -<p>In food habits the house wren is entirely beneficial. He may be said to -live upon animal food alone, for an examination of 88 stomachs showed that -98 per cent of the contents was made up of insects or their allies, and only 2 -per cent was vegetable food, including bits of grass and similar matter, -evidently taken by accident with the insects. Half of this food consisted of -grasshoppers and beetles; the remainder of caterpillars, bugs, and spiders. -As the wren is a prolific breeder, frequently rearing in a season from 12 to 16 -young, a family of these birds must cause considerable reduction in the number -of insects in a garden. Wrens are industrious foragers, searching every tree, -shrub, and vine for caterpillars, and examining every post and rail of the fence -and every cranny in the wall for insects or spiders.</p> - -<p>The house wren is only one of a numerous group of small birds of similar -habits. There are within the limits of the United States 28 species and subspecies -of wrens, occupying more or less completely the whole country from -the Atlantic to the Pacific. With the exception of the marsh wrens,<a name="FNanchor_13" id="FNanchor_13"></a><a href="#Footnote_13" class="fnanchor">[13]</a> they all -appear to prefer some cosy nook for a nesting site, and, as it happens, the -farm buildings afford just the place desired. This has led several of the wrens -to seek out the habitations of man, and he is benefited by their destruction of -noxious insects. No species of wren has been accused of harm, and their -presence should be encouraged about every farm, ranch, village, or suburban -residence.</p> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_13" id="Footnote_13"></a><a href="#FNanchor_13"><span class="label">[13]</span></a> <i>Telmatodytes palustris.</i></p> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_7" id="Page_7">« 7 »</a></span></p></div> - - - - -<h2><a name="BROWN_THRASHER" id="BROWN_THRASHER">BROWN THRASHER.</a></h2> - - -<div class="fig_right" style="width: 274px;"> -<a id="fig5"></a><img src="images/fig5.png" width="274" height="193" alt="" /> -<div class="fig_caption"><span class="smcap">Fig. 5.</span>—Brown thrasher. Length, about 11 -inches.</div> -</div> - -<p>The brown thrasher<a name="FNanchor_14" id="FNanchor_14"></a><a href="#Footnote_14" class="fnanchor">[14]</a> (<a href="#fig5">fig. 5</a>) breeds throughout the United States east of the -Great Plains, and winters in the South Atlantic and Gulf States. It occasionally -visits the garden or orchard, but nests in swamps or in groves standing -upon low ground. The thrasher’s -favorite time for singing is in early -morning, when, perched on the top -of a tall bush or low tree, it gives -an exhibition of vocal powers which -would do credit to a mocking bird. -Indeed, in the South, where the latter -bird is abundant, the thrasher is -known as the sandy mocker.</p> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_14" id="Footnote_14"></a><a href="#FNanchor_14"><span class="label">[14]</span></a> <i>Toxostoma rufum.</i></p></div> - -<p>The food of the brown thrasher -consists of both fruit and insects. -An examination of 636 stomachs -showed 36 per cent of vegetable and -64 of animal food, practically all -insects, and mostly taken in spring -before fruit was ripe. Half the insects -were beetles and the remainder -chiefly grasshoppers, caterpillars, -bugs, and spiders. A few predacious beetles were eaten, but on the whole the -work of the species as an insect destroyer may be considered beneficial.</p> - -<p>Eight per cent of its food is made up of fruits like raspberries and currants -which are or may be cultivated, but the raspberries at least are as likely to -belong to wild as to cultivated varieties. Grain, made up mostly of scattered -kernels of oats and corn, is merely a trifle, amounting to only 3 per cent. -Though some of the corn may be taken from newly planted fields, it is amply -paid for by the destruction of May beetles which are eaten at the same time. -The rest of the food consists of wild fruit or seeds. Taken all in all, the brown -thrasher is a useful bird, and probably -does as good work in its secluded -retreats as it would about the -garden, for the swamps and groves -are no doubt the breeding grounds -of many insects that migrate thence -to attack the crops of the farmer.</p> - - - - -<h2><a id="CATBIRD"></a>CATBIRD.</h2> - - -<div class="fig_right" style="width: 284px;"> -<a id="fig6"></a><img src="images/fig6.png" width="284" height="232" alt="" /> -<div class="fig_caption"><span class="smcap">Fig. 6.</span>—Catbird. Length, about 9 inches.</div> -</div> - -<p>The catbird<a name="FNanchor_15" id="FNanchor_15"></a><a href="#Footnote_15" class="fnanchor">[15]</a> (<a href="#fig6">fig. 6</a>), like the -thrasher, is a lover of swamps and -delights to make its home in a tangle -of wild grapevines, greenbriers, and -shrubs, where it is safe from attack -and can find its favorite food in -abundance. It is found throughout -the United States west to the Rocky -Mountains, and extends also from -Washington, Idaho, and Utah northward -into the provinces of Canada. It winters in the Southern States, Cuba, -Mexico, and Central America.</p> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_15" id="Footnote_15"></a><a href="#FNanchor_15"><span class="label">[15]</span></a> <i>Dumetella carolinensis.</i></p></div> - -<p>Reports from the Mississippi Valley indicate that the catbird is sometimes a -serious annoyance to fruit growers. The reason for such reports may possibly -be found in the fact that on the prairies fruit-bearing shrubs, which afford so -large a part of this bird’s food, are conspicuously absent. With the settlement -of this region comes an extensive planting of orchards, vineyards, and small-fruit -gardens, which furnish shelter and nesting sites for the catbird as well -as for other species. There is in consequence a large increase in the numbers -<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_8" id="Page_8">« 8 »</a></span> -of the birds, but no corresponding gain in the supply of native fruits upon -which they were accustomed to feed. Under these circumstances what is more -natural than for the birds to turn to cultivated fruits for their food? The -remedy is obvious: Cultivated fruits can be protected by the simple expedient -of planting the wild species which are preferred by the birds. Some experiments -with catbirds in captivity show that the Russian mulberry is preferred to any -cultivated fruit.</p> - -<p>The stomachs of 645 catbirds were examined and found to contain 44 per -cent of animal (insect) and 58 per cent of vegetable food. Ants, beetles, caterpillars, -and grasshoppers constitute three-fourths of the animal food, the remainder -being made up of bugs, miscellaneous insects, and spiders. One-third -of the vegetable food consists of cultivated fruits, or those which may be -cultivated, as strawberries, raspberries, and blackberries; but while we debit -the bird with the whole of this, it is probable—and in the eastern and well-wooded -part of the country almost certain—that a large part is obtained from -wild vines. The rest of the vegetable matter is mostly wild fruit, as -cherries, dogwood, sour gum, elderberries, greenbrier, spiceberries, black alder, -sumac, and poison ivy. Although the catbird sometimes does considerable -harm by destroying small fruit, it can not on the whole be considered injurious. -On the contrary, in most parts of -the country it does far more good -than harm.</p> - - - -<hr class="chap" /> -<h2><a name="THE_SWALLOWS" id="THE_SWALLOWS">THE SWALLOWS.</a></h2> - - -<div class="fig_right" style="width: 274px;"> -<a id="fig7"></a><img src="images/fig7.png" width="274" height="292" alt="" /> -<div class="fig_caption"><span class="smcap">Fig. 7.</span>—Barn swallow. Length, about 7 inches.</div> -</div> - -<p>Seven common species of swallows -are found within the limits of -the United States, four of which -have abandoned to some extent -their primitive nesting habits and -have attached themselves to the -abodes of man.</p> - -<p>In the eastern part of the country -the barn swallow<a name="FNanchor_16" id="FNanchor_16"></a><a href="#Footnote_16" class="fnanchor">[16]</a> (<a href="#fig7">fig. 7</a>) now -builds exclusively under roofs, having -entirely abandoned the rock -caves and cliffs in which it formerly -nested. More recently the cliff -swallow<a name="FNanchor_17" id="FNanchor_17"></a><a href="#Footnote_17" class="fnanchor">[17]</a> has found a better nesting -site under the eaves of buildings -than was afforded by the overhanging -cliffs of earth or stone which it -once used and to which it still -resorts occasionally in the East and -habitually in the unsettled West. The martin<a name="FNanchor_18" id="FNanchor_18"></a><a href="#Footnote_18" class="fnanchor">[18]</a> and the white-bellied, or tree, -swallow<a name="FNanchor_19" id="FNanchor_19"></a><a href="#Footnote_19" class="fnanchor">[19]</a> nest either in houses supplied for the purpose, in abandoned nests of -woodpeckers, or in natural crannies in rocks. The northern violet-green swallow,<a name="FNanchor_20" id="FNanchor_20"></a><a href="#Footnote_20" class="fnanchor">[20]</a> -the rough-winged swallow,<a name="FNanchor_21" id="FNanchor_21"></a><a href="#Footnote_21" class="fnanchor">[21]</a> and the bank swallow<a name="FNanchor_22" id="FNanchor_22"></a><a href="#Footnote_22" class="fnanchor">[22]</a> still live in practically -such places as their ancestors chose.</p> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_16" id="Footnote_16"></a><a href="#FNanchor_16"><span class="label">[16]</span></a> <i>Hirundo erythrogastra.</i></p> - -<p><a name="Footnote_17" id="Footnote_17"></a><a href="#FNanchor_17"><span class="label">[17]</span></a> <i>Petrochelidon lunifrons.</i></p> - -<p><a name="Footnote_18" id="Footnote_18"></a><a href="#FNanchor_18"><span class="label">[18]</span></a> <i>Progne subis.</i></p> - -<p><a name="Footnote_19" id="Footnote_19"></a><a href="#FNanchor_19"><span class="label">[19]</span></a> <i>Iridoprocne bicolor.</i></p> - -<p><a name="Footnote_20" id="Footnote_20"></a><a href="#FNanchor_20"><span class="label">[20]</span></a> <i>Tachycineta thalassina.</i></p> - -<p><a name="Footnote_21" id="Footnote_21"></a><a href="#FNanchor_21"><span class="label">[21]</span></a> <i>Stelgidopteryx serripennis.</i></p> - -<p><a name="Footnote_22" id="Footnote_22"></a><a href="#FNanchor_22"><span class="label">[22]</span></a> <i>Riparia riparia.</i></p></div> - -<p>Field observation convinces an ordinarily attentive person that the food of -swallows must consist of the smaller insects captured in mid-air or picked from -the tops of tall grass or weeds. This observation is borne out by an examination -of stomachs, which shows that the food is made up of many small species -of beetles which are much on the wing; many species of mosquitoes and their -allies, together with large quantities of flying ants; and a few insects of similar -kinds. Most of these are either injurious or annoying, and the numbers destroyed -by swallows are not only beyond calculation but almost beyond imagination.</p> - -<p>Unlike many other groups of birds, the six species of swallows found in the -Eastern States extend in a practically unchanged form across the continent, -where they are reinforced by the northern, or Pacific-coast, violet-green swallow.</p> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_9" id="Page_9">« 9 »</a></span></p> - -<p>It is a mistake to tear down from the eaves of a barn the nests of a colony of -cliff swallows, for so far from disfiguring a building they make a picturesque -addition to it, and the presence of swallows should be encouraged by every -device. It is said that cliff and barn swallows may be induced to build their -nests in a particular locality, otherwise suitable, by providing a quantity of -mud to be used by them as mortar. Barn swallows may also be encouraged by -cutting a small hole in the gable of the barn, while martins and white-bellied -swallows will be grateful for boxes like those for the bluebird, but placed in a -higher situation.</p> - - - -<hr class="chap" /> -<h2><a name="TOWHEE" id="TOWHEE">TOWHEE.</a></h2> - - -<div class="fig_right" style="width: 292px;"> -<a id="fig8"></a><img src="images/fig8.png" width="292" height="181" alt="" /> -<div class="fig_caption"><span class="smcap">Fig. 8.</span>—Towhee. Length, about 8 inches.</div> -</div> - -<p>The towhee, chewink, or ground robin<a name="FNanchor_23" id="FNanchor_23"></a><a href="#Footnote_23" class="fnanchor">[23]</a> (<a href="#fig8">fig. 8</a>), as it is variously known, -inhabits nearly the whole of the United States east of the Great Plains. It -breeds from the Middle States northward and winters in the southern half of -the country. Naturally associated with the catbird and brown thrasher, it -lives in much the same places, though it is more given to haunting hedgerows -along roads and fences. After snow has disappeared in early spring an investigation -of the rustling so often -heard among the leaves near a -fence or in a thicket will frequently -disclose a towhee hard at -work scratching for his dinner -after the manner of a hen; and in -these places and along the sunny -border of woods old leaves will be -found overturned where the bird -has been searching for hibernating -beetles and larvæ. The good -which the towhee does in this -way can hardly be overestimated, -since the death of a single insect -at this time, before it has had -an opportunity to deposit its eggs, -is equivalent to the destruction of -a host later in the year. The towhee has also been credited with visiting potato -fields and feeding upon the potato beetle. Its vegetable food consists of seeds -and small wild fruits, but no complaint on this score is known to have been -made. So far as observation goes, the bird never touches either cultivated fruit -or grain; in fact, it is too shy and retiring even to stay about gardens for any -length of time.</p> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_23" id="Footnote_23"></a><a href="#FNanchor_23"><span class="label">[23]</span></a> <i>Pipilo erythrophthalmus.</i></p></div> - - - - -<h2><a name="THE_SPARROWS" id="THE_SPARROWS"></a>THE SPARROWS.<a name="FNanchor_24" id="FNanchor_24"></a><a href="#Footnote_24" class="fnanchor">[24]</a></h2> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_24" id="Footnote_24"></a><a href="#FNanchor_24"><span class="label">[24]</span></a> The sparrows here mentioned are all native species. A full account of the English, -or house, sparrow (<i>Passer domesticus</i>), including its introduction, habits, and depredations, -was published in Bul. No. 1 of the Division of Ornithology in 1889. For information -in regard to combating the English sparrow, see Farmers’ Bulletin 493, The English -Sparrow as a Pest, by Ned Dearborn, 1912.</p></div> - - -<p>Sparrows are not obtrusive birds, either in plumage, song, or action. There -are some 40 species, with nearly as many subspecies, in North America. Not -more than half a dozen forms are generally known in any one locality. All the -species are more or less migratory, but so widely are they distributed that there is -probably no part of the country where some can not be found throughout the year.</p> - -<p>While sparrows are noted seed eaters, they do not by any means confine -themselves to a vegetable diet. During the summer, and especially in the -breeding season, they eat many insects and feed their young largely upon the -same food. Examination of stomachs of three species—the song sparrow<a name="FNanchor_25" id="FNanchor_25"></a><a href="#Footnote_25" class="fnanchor">[25]</a> -(<a href="#fig9">fig. 9</a>), chipping sparrow,<a name="FNanchor_26" id="FNanchor_26"></a><a href="#Footnote_26" class="fnanchor">[26]</a> and field sparrow<a name="FNanchor_27" id="FNanchor_27"></a><a href="#Footnote_27" class="fnanchor">[27]</a> (<a href="#fig10">fig. 10</a>)—shows that about one-third -of the food consists of insects, comprising many injurious beetles, as -snout beetles or weevils, and leaf beetles. Many grasshoppers are eaten. In -the case of the chipping sparrow these insects form one-eighth of the food. -Grasshoppers would seem to be rather large morsels, but the bird probably -confines itself to the smaller species; indeed, the greatest amount (over 36 per -cent) is eaten in June, when the larger species are still young and the smaller -most numerous. Besides the insects already mentioned, many wasps and bugs -are taken. Predacious and parasitic hymenopterous insects and predacious -beetles, all useful, are eaten only to a slight extent, so that as a whole the insect -diet of the native sparrows may be considered beneficial. There are several -records of potato-bug larvæ eaten by chipping sparrow’s.</p> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_25" id="Footnote_25"></a><a href="#FNanchor_25"><span class="label">[25]</span></a> <i>Melospiza melodia.</i></p> - -<p><a name="Footnote_26" id="Footnote_26"></a><a href="#FNanchor_26"><span class="label">[26]</span></a> <i>Spizella passerina.</i></p> - -<p><a name="Footnote_27" id="Footnote_27"></a><a href="#FNanchor_27"><span class="label">[27]</span></a> <i>Spizella pusilla.</i></p> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_10" id="Page_10">« 10 »</a></span></p> - -<div class="fig_left" style="width: 257px;"> -<a id="fig9"></a><img src="images/fig9.png" width="257" height="194" alt="" /> -<div class="fig_caption"><span class="smcap">Fig. 9.</span>—Song sparrow. Length, about -6½ inches.</div> -</div> - -<p>Their vegetable food is limited almost -exclusively to hard seeds. This might -seem to indicate that the birds feed to -some extent upon grain, but the stomachs -examined show only one kind, oats, -and but little of that. The great bulk -of the food is made up of grass and -weed seed, which form almost the entire -diet during winter, and the amount -consumed is immense.</p> - -<p>In the agricultural region of the upper -Mississippi Valley, by roadsides, on -borders of cultivated fields, or in abandoned -fields, wherever they can obtain a -foothold, masses of rank weeds spring -up and often form almost impenetrable -thickets which afford food and shelter -for immense numbers of birds and -enable them to withstand great cold and the most terrible blizzards. A person -visiting one of these weed patches on a sunny morning in January, when the -thermometer is 20° or more below zero, will be struck with the life and animation -of the busy little inhabitants. Instead of sitting forlorn and half frozen, -they may be seen flitting from branch to branch, twittering and fluttering, and -showing every evidence of enjoyment and perfect comfort. If one of them is -captured it will be found in excellent condition; in fact, a veritable ball of fat.</p> - -<div class="fig_right" style="width: 258px;"> -<a id="fig10"></a><img src="images/fig10.png" width="258" height="296" alt="" /> -<div class="fig_caption"><p><span class="smcap">Fig. 10.</span>—Field sparrow. Length, about -5½ inches.]</p></div> -</div> - -<p>The snowbird<a name="FNanchor_28" id="FNanchor_28"></a><a href="#Footnote_28" class="fnanchor">[28]</a> and tree sparrow<a name="FNanchor_29" id="FNanchor_29"></a><a href="#Footnote_29" class="fnanchor">[29]</a> are -perhaps the most numerous of all the -sparrows. Examination of many stomachs -shows that in winter the tree sparrow -feeds entirely upon seeds of weeds. -Probably each bird consumes about one-fourth of an ounce a day. In an article -contributed in 1881 to the New York -Tribune the writer estimated the amount -of weed seed annually destroyed by -these birds in Iowa. On the basis of -one-fourth of an ounce of seed eaten -daily by each bird, and an average of -ten birds to each square mile, remaining -in their winter range 200 days, there -would be a total of 1,750,000 pounds, -or 875 tons of weed seed consumed in -a single season by this one species. -Large as are these figures, they unquestionably -fall far short of the reality. -The estimate of 10 birds to a square -mile is very conservative, for in Massachusetts, -where the food supply is -less than in the Western States, the tree -sparrow is even more abundant than -this in winter. The writer has known -places in Iowa where several thousand tree sparrows could be seen within the -space of a few acres. This estimate, moreover, is for a single species, while, -as a matter of fact, there are at least half a dozen birds (not all sparrows) that -habitually feed during winter on these seeds. Farther south the tree sparrow -is replaced in winter by the white-throated sparrow,<a name="FNanchor_30" id="FNanchor_30"></a><a href="#Footnote_30" class="fnanchor">[30]</a> the white-crowned sparrow,<a name="FNanchor_31" id="FNanchor_31"></a><a href="#Footnote_31" class="fnanchor">[31]</a> -the fox sparrow,<a name="FNanchor_32" id="FNanchor_32"></a><a href="#Footnote_32" class="fnanchor">[32]</a> the song sparrow, the field sparrow, and several others; -so that all over the land a vast number of these seed eaters are at work during -the colder months reducing next year’s crop of worse than useless plants.</p> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_28" id="Footnote_28"></a><a href="#FNanchor_28"><span class="label">[28]</span></a> <i>Junco hyemails.</i></p> - -<p><a name="Footnote_29" id="Footnote_29"></a><a href="#FNanchor_29"><span class="label">[29]</span></a> <i>Spizella monticola.</i></p> - -<p><a name="Footnote_30" id="Footnote_30"></a><a href="#FNanchor_30"><span class="label">[30]</span></a> <i>Zonotrichia albicollis.</i></p> - -<p><a name="Footnote_31" id="Footnote_31"></a><a href="#FNanchor_31"><span class="label">[31]</span></a> <i>Zonotrichia leucophrys.</i></p> - -<p><a name="Footnote_32" id="Footnote_32"></a><a href="#FNanchor_32"><span class="label">[32]</span></a> <i>Passerella iliaca.</i></p> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_11" id="Page_11">« 11 »</a></span></p> - - - - -<h2><a name="HOUSE_FINCH" id="HOUSE_FINCH">HOUSE FINCH.</a></h2> - - -<p>Of all the sparrow group, there is probably no member, unless it be the -exotic form known as the English sparrow,<a name="FNanchor_33" id="FNanchor_33"></a><a href="#Footnote_33" class="fnanchor">[33]</a> that has by reason of its food -habits called down so many maledictions upon its head as the house finch,<a name="FNanchor_34" id="FNanchor_34"></a><a href="#Footnote_34" class="fnanchor">[34]</a> -red-head, or linnet, as it is variously called. This bird, like the other members -of its family, is by nature a seed eater, and before the beginning of fruit -raising in California probably subsisted upon the seeds of weeds, with an occasional -taste of some wild berry. Now, however, when orchards have extended -throughout the length and breadth of the State and every month from May to -December sees some ripening fruit, the linnets take their share. As their -name is legion, the sum total of the fruit that they destroy is more than the -fruit raiser can well spare. As the bird has a stout beak, it has no difficulty -in breaking the skin of the hardest fruit and feasting upon the pulp, thereby -spoiling the fruit and giving weaker-billed birds a chance to sample and acquire -a taste for what they might not otherwise have molested. Complaints against -this bird have been many and loud, more especially in the years when fruit -crops first came to be an important factor in the prosperity of the Pacific coast. -At that time the various fruits afforded the linnets a new and easily obtained -food, while cultivation had reduced their formerly abundant supply of weed -seed. When the early fruit growers saw their expected golden harvest suddenly -snatched away or at least much reduced in value by the little marauders, -it is no wonder that they were exasperated and wished to destroy the authors -of the mischief.</p> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_33" id="Footnote_33"></a><a href="#FNanchor_33"><span class="label">[33]</span></a> <i>Passer domesticus.</i></p> - -<p><a name="Footnote_34" id="Footnote_34"></a><a href="#FNanchor_34"><span class="label">[34]</span></a> <i>Carpodacus mexicanus frontalis.</i></p> -</div> - -<p>In order to test the matter thoroughly and ascertain whether these birds -ate any other kind of food that might to some extent offset the damage inflicted -upon the fruit, the horticulturists and ornithologists of California were requested -to secure a number of the stomachs of these birds and send them to the Biological -Survey. An agent was also sent to the fruit-raising sections, who -watched the birds in the orchards and collected a number of them. In this -way 1,206 stomachs were obtained and carefully examined, and the result shows -that animal food (insects) constituted 2.44 per cent and vegetable food 97.56 -per cent of the stomach contents, not counting gravel.</p> - -<p>So small a proportion of animal food can not, of course, mean a great -destruction of insects. As these stomachs were collected in every month, with -the greater number taken during the summer, it is evident that whatever good -one may expect from the linnet must not be looked for in this direction. -Unlike most of the sparrow family, the linnet does not feed its young upon -insects to any great extent. The contents of the stomachs of a number of -nestlings were carefully examined, and the only animal food was found to -consist of woolly plant lice. These also constituted the great bulk of the -animal food eaten by adults.</p> - -<p>The vegetable food of the species consists of three principal items—grain, -fruit, and weed seeds. Grain amounts to less than 1½ per cent in August, which -is the month of greatest consumption, and the average for the year is a trifle -more than one-fourth of 1 per cent. Fruit attains its maximum in September, -when it amounts to 27 per cent of the whole food, but the average for the year -is only 10 per cent. The seeds of weeds constitute the bulk of the diet of the -linnet, and in August, the month of least consumption, amount to about 64 -per cent of the food. The average for the year is 86 per cent.</p> - -<p>From the foregoing it is evident that whatever the linnet’s sins may be, -grain eating is not one of them. In view of the great complaint made against -its fruit-eating habit, the small quantity found in the stomachs taken is somewhat -of a surprise. But it must be remembered that the stomach contents -do not tell the whole story. When a bird takes a single peck from a cherry or -an apricot, it spoils the whole fruit, and in this way may ruin half a dozen in -taking a single meal. It is safe to say that the fruit pulp found in the stomach -does not represent more than one-fifth of what is actually destroyed. That -the linnets are persistent and voracious eaters of early fruits, especially -cherries and apricots, every fruit raiser in California will bear testimony. That -the damage is often serious no one will deny. It is noticeable, however, that -<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_12" id="Page_12">« 12 »</a></span> -the earliest varieties are the ones most affected; also, that in large orchards -the damage is not perceptible, while in small plantations the whole crop is frequently -destroyed.</p> - - - -<hr class="chap" /> -<h2><a name="THE_GRACKLES" id="THE_GRACKLES">THE GRACKLES.</a></h2> - - -<p>The crow blackbird or grackle<a name="FNanchor_35" id="FNanchor_35"></a><a href="#Footnote_35" class="fnanchor">[35]</a> (<a href="#fig11">fig. 11</a>) in one or more of its subspecies is a -familiar object in all the States east of the Rocky Mountains. Throughout -the year it is resident as far north as southern Illinois, and in summer extends -its range into the Canadian Provinces. In the Mississippi Valley it is one of -the most abundant of birds, preferring to nest in the artificial groves and -windbreaks near farms instead of in the natural “timber” which it formerly -used. It breeds also in parks and near buildings, often in considerable colonies. -Farther east, in New England, it is only locally abundant, though frequently -seen in migration. In the latter days of August and throughout September it -is found in immense numbers before moving southward.</p> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_35" id="Footnote_35"></a><a href="#FNanchor_35"><span class="label">[35]</span></a> <i>Quiscalus quiscula.</i></p></div> - -<p>The grackle is accused of many sins, such as stealing grain and fruit and -robbing the nests of other birds. An examination of 2,346 stomachs shows -that nearly one-third of its food consists of insects, most of which are injurious. -The bird also eats a few snails, crawfishes, salamanders, small fish, and occasionally -a mouse. The stomach contents do not indicate that it robs other -birds’ nests to any great extent, as remains of birds and birds’ eggs amount -to less than half of 1 per cent.</p> - -<p>It is on account of its vegetable food that the grackle most deserves condemnation. -Grain is eaten during the -whole year, and only for a short -time in summer is other food attractive -enough to induce the bird -to alter its diet. The grain taken -in winter and spring probably consists -of waste kernels from the -stubble. The stomachs do not indicate -that the bird pulls sprouting -grain; but the wheat eaten in July -and August and the corn eaten in -fall are probably from fields of -standing grain. The total amount -of grain consumed during the year -constitutes 45 per cent of the food, -but it is safe to say that at least -half is waste grain and consequently -of no value. Although the -crow blackbird eats a few cherries -and blackberries in their season, and in the fall some wild fruit, it apparently -does no damage in this way.</p> - -<div class="fig_left" style="width: 275px;"> -<a id="fig11"></a><img src="images/fig11.png" width="275" height="203" alt="" /> -<div class="fig_caption"><span class="smcap">Fig. 11.</span>—Purple grackle. Length, about 12 inches.</div> -</div> - -<p>Large flocks of grackles no doubt do considerable injury to grain crops, and -there seems to be no remedy, except the destruction of the birds, which is in -itself expensive. During the breeding season, however, the species does much -good by eating insects and by feeding them to its young, which are reared -almost entirely upon this food. The bird does the greatest amount of good in -spring, when it follows the plow in search of large grubworms, of which it is -so fond that it sometimes literally crams its stomach full of them.</p> - - - -<hr class="chap" /> -<h2><a name="BREWER_BLACKBIRD" id="BREWER_BLACKBIRD">BREWER BLACKBIRD.</a></h2> - - -<p>The Brewer blackbird<a name="FNanchor_36" id="FNanchor_36"></a><a href="#Footnote_36" class="fnanchor">[36]</a> takes the place in the Western States of the grackle, or -crow blackbird, which lives in the Mississippi Valley and farther east and is -very similar in appearance and habits. It breeds east to the Great Plains and -north into Canada, and winters over most of its breeding range in the United -States and south to Guatemala. At home in fields, meadows, and orchards, and -about ranch buildings and cultivated lands generally, it nests in bushes and -weeds, sometimes in trees, and is very gregarious, especially about barnyards and -corrals. The bird feeds freely in stockyards and in cultivated fields, and -when fruit is ripe does not hesitate to take a share. During the cherry season -in California the birds are much in the orchards. In one case they were -<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_13" id="Page_13">« 13 »</a></span> -observed feeding on cherries, but when a neighboring fruit grower began to -plow his orchard almost every blackbird in the vicinity was upon the newly -opened ground close after the plowman’s heels in its eagerness to secure the -insects turned up.</p> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_36" id="Footnote_36"></a><a href="#FNanchor_36"><span class="label">[36]</span></a> <i>Euphagus cyanocephalus.</i></p></div> - -<p>The laboratory investigation of this bird’s food covered 312 stomachs, collected -in every month and representing especially the fruit and grain sections -of southern California. The animal portion of the food was 32 per cent and -the vegetable 68 per cent.</p> - -<p>Caterpillars and their pupæ amounted to 12 per cent of the whole food and -were eaten every month. They include many of those pests known as cutworms. -The cotton-boll worm, or corn-ear worm, was identified in at least 10 stomachs, -and in 11 were found pupæ of the codling moth. The animal food also included -other insects, and spiders, sow bugs, snails, and eggshells.</p> - -<p>The vegetable food may be divided into fruit, grain, and weed seeds. Fruit -was eaten in May, June, and July, not a trace appearing in any other month, -and was composed of cherries, or what was thought to be such, strawberries, -blackberries or raspberries, and fruit pulp or skins not further identified. -However, the amount, a little more than 4 per cent for the year, was too small -to make a bad showing, and if the bird does no greater harm than is involved -in its fruit eating it is well worth protecting. Grain amounts to 54 per cent -of the yearly food and forms a considerable percentage in each month; oats -are the favorite and were the sole contents of 14 stomachs, and wheat of 2, but no -stomach was completely filled with any other grain. Weed seeds, eaten in -every month to the extent of 9 per cent of the food, were found in rather small -quantities and irregularly, and appear to have been merely a makeshift.</p> - -<p>Stomachs of nestlings, varying in age from 24 hours to some that were nearly -fledged, were found to contain 89 per cent animal to 11 per cent vegetable matter. -The largest items in the former were -caterpillars, grasshoppers, and spiders. -In the latter the largest items -were fruit, probably cherries; grain, -mostly oats; and rubbish.</p> - - - -<hr class="chap" /> -<h2><a name="BALTIMORE_ORIOLE" id="BALTIMORE_ORIOLE">BALTIMORE ORIOLE.</a></h2> - - -<div class="fig_right" style="width: 260px;"> -<a id="fig12"></a><img src="images/fig12.png" width="260" height="183" alt="" /> -<div class="fig_caption"><span class="smcap">Fig. 12.</span>—Baltimore oriole. Length, about -7½ inches.</div> -</div> - -<p>Brilliancy of plumage, sweetness of -song, and food habits to which no exception -can be taken are some of -the striking characteristics of the -Baltimore oriole<a name="FNanchor_37" id="FNanchor_37"></a><a href="#Footnote_37" class="fnanchor">[37]</a> (<a href="#fig12">fig. 12</a>). In summer -it is found throughout the northern -half of the United States east of -the Great Plains. Its nest commands -hardly less admiration than the -beauty of its plumage or the excellence of its song. Hanging from the tip of -the outermost bough of a stately elm, it is almost inaccessible to depredators -and so strongly fastened as to bid defiance to the elements.</p> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_37" id="Footnote_37"></a><a href="#FNanchor_37"><span class="label">[37]</span></a> <i>Icterus galbula.</i></p></div> - -<p>Observation both in the field and laboratory shows that caterpillars constitute -the largest item of the fare of the oriole. In 204 stomachs they formed 34 -per cent of the food, and they are eaten in varying quantities during all the -months in which the bird remains in this country. The fewest are eaten in -July, when a little fruit also is taken. The other insects consist of beetles, bugs, -ants, wasps, grasshoppers, and some spiders. The beetles are principally click -beetles, the larvæ of which are among the most destructive insects known; and -the bugs include plant and bark lice, both very harmful, but so small and -obscure as to be passed over unnoticed by most birds. Ants are eaten mostly -in spring, grasshoppers in July and August, and wasps and spiders with considerable -regularity throughout the season.</p> - -<p>During the stay of the oriole in the United States, vegetable matter amounts -to only a little more than 16 per cent of its food, so that the possibility of its -doing much damage to crops is very limited. The bird is accused of eating -peas to a considerable extent, but remains of such were found in only two -cases. One writer says that it damages grapes, but none were found in the -stomachs.</p> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_14" id="Page_14">« 14 »</a></span></p> - - - - -<h2><a name="BULLOCK_ORIOLE" id="BULLOCK_ORIOLE">BULLOCK ORIOLE.</a></h2> - - -<p>The Bullock oriole<a name="FNanchor_38" id="FNanchor_38"></a><a href="#Footnote_38" class="fnanchor">[38]</a> is practically a counterpart of the Baltimore oriole, taking -the place of that species west of the Plains and throughout the Pacific coast -region. It does not essentially differ in its habits of nesting or in its food from -its eastern relative, but it is less beautiful in plumage. The examination of -162 stomachs shows that 79 per cent of its food consists of insects, with a few -spiders, a lizard, a mollusk shell, and eggshells. Beetles amounted to 35 per -cent, and all except a few ladybugs were harmful species. Ants were found in -19 stomachs, and in one there was nothing else. Bees, wasps, etc., were in 56 -stomachs, and entirely filled 2 of them. Including the ants, they amount to -nearly 15 per cent of the food of the season.</p> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_38" id="Footnote_38"></a><a href="#FNanchor_38"><span class="label">[38]</span></a> <i>Icterus bullocki.</i></p></div> - -<p>One of the most interesting articles of food in the oriole’s dietary was the -black olive scale, found in 45 stomachs, and amounting to 5 per cent of the -food. In several cases these scales formed 80 per cent or more of the contents, -and in one, 30 individual scales could be counted. They were evidently a -standard article of diet, and were eaten regularly in every month of the -oriole’s stay except April. Hemipterous insects other than scales, eaten quite -regularly, make up a little more than 5 per cent of the food. They were mostly -stinkbugs, leaf hoppers, and tree hoppers. Plant lice were found in one stomach.</p> - -<p>Moths, pupæ, and caterpillars compose the largest item of the oriole’s animal -food. The average consumption during its summer stay is a little more than -41 per cent. Of these, perhaps the most interesting were the pupæ and larvæ -of the codling moth. These were found in 23 stomachs, showing that they -are not an unusual article of diet. No less than 14 of the pupa cases were found -in one stomach, and as they are very fragile many others may have been present, -but broken beyond recognition.</p> - -<p>Grasshoppers probably do not come much in the oriole’s way. They were -eaten, however, to the extent of a little more than 3 per cent. But in spite -of the fact that grasshoppers are eaten so sparingly, 2 stomachs, both taken in -June, contained nothing else, and another contained 97 per cent of them.</p> - -<p>Various insects and spiders, with a few other items, make up the rest of the -animal food, a little more than 5 per cent. Spiders are not important in the -oriole’s food, but are probably eaten whenever found. They were identified in -44 stomachs, but in small numbers. The scales of a lizard were found in one -stomach and the shell of a snail in another.</p> - -<p>The vegetable contingent of the oriole’s food is mostly fruit, especially in -June and July, when it takes kindly to cherries and apricots, and sometimes -eats more than the fruit grower considers a fair share. However, no great -complaint is made against the bird, and it is probable that as a rule it does -not do serious harm. With such a good record as an insect eater it can well -be spared a few cherries.</p> - - - -<hr class="chap" /> -<h2><a name="THE_MEADOWLARKS" id="THE_MEADOWLARKS">THE MEADOWLARKS.</a></h2> - - -<p>The eastern meadowlark<a name="FNanchor_39" id="FNanchor_39"></a><a href="#Footnote_39" class="fnanchor">[39]</a> (<a href="#fig13">fig. 13</a>) is a common and well-known bird occurring -from the Atlantic coast to the Great Plains, where it gives way to the closely -related western species,<a name="FNanchor_40" id="FNanchor_40"></a><a href="#Footnote_40" class="fnanchor">[40]</a> which extends thence westward to the Pacific. It -winters from our southern border as far north as the District of Columbia, -southern Illinois, and occasionally Iowa. The western form winters somewhat -farther north. Although it is a bird of the plains, and finds its most congenial -haunts in the prairies of the West, it is at home wherever there is level or undulating -land covered with grass or weeds, with plenty of water at hand.</p> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_39" id="Footnote_39"></a><a href="#FNanchor_39"><span class="label">[39]</span></a> <i>Sturnella magna.</i></p> - -<p><a name="Footnote_40" id="Footnote_40"></a><a href="#FNanchor_40"><span class="label">[40]</span></a> <i>Sturnella neglecta.</i></p></div> - -<p>In the 1,514 stomachs examined, animal food (practically all insects) constituted -74 per cent of the contents and vegetable matter 26 per cent. As would -naturally be supposed, the insects were ground species, as beetles, bugs, grasshoppers, -and caterpillars, with a few flies, wasps, and spiders. A number of the -stomachs were collected when the ground was covered with snow, but even these -contained a large percentage of insects, showing the bird’s skill in finding -proper food under adverse circumstances.</p> - -<p>Of the various insects eaten, crickets and grasshoppers are the most important, -constituting 26 per cent of the food of the year and 72 per cent of the -food in August. It is scarcely necessary to mention the beneficial effect of a -number of these birds on a field of grass in the height of the grasshopper season. -Of the 1,514 stomachs collected at all seasons of the year, 778, or more -<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_15" id="Page_15">« 15 »</a></span> -than half, contained remains of grasshoppers, and one was filled with fragments -of 37 of these insects. This seems to show conclusively that grasshoppers -are preferred, and are eaten whenever they can be found. Especially -notable is the great number taken in August, the month when grasshoppers -reach their maximum abundance; stomach examination shows that large -numbers of birds resort at this time to this diet, no matter what may be the -food during the rest of the year.</p> - -<div class="fig_left" style="width: 275px;"> -<a id="fig13"></a><img src="images/fig13.png" width="275" height="171" alt="" /> -<div class="fig_caption"><span class="smcap">Fig. 13.</span>—Meadowlark. Length, about 10 inches.</div> -</div> - -<p>Next to grasshoppers, beetles make up the most important item of the meadowlark’s -food, amounting to 25 per cent, about one-half of which are predacious -ground beetles. The others are all harmful species.</p> - -<p>Forty-two individuals of different kinds of May beetles were found in the -stomachs of meadowlarks, and there were probably many more which were -past recognition. To this form and several closely allied ones belong the -numerous white grubs, which are among the worst enemies to many cultivated -crops, notably grasses and grains, and to a less extent strawberries and garden -vegetables. In the larval stage they eat the roots of these plants, and being -large, one individual may destroy several plants. In the adult stage they feed -upon the foliage of trees and other plants, and in this way add to the damage -which they began in the earlier form. As these enemies of husbandry are not -easily destroyed by man, it is obviously wise to encourage their natural foes.</p> - -<p>Among the weevils found in the stomachs the most important economically -are the cotton-boll weevil and the recently introduced alfalfa weevil of Utah. -Several hundred meadowlarks were taken in the cotton-growing region, and -the boll weevil was found in 25 stomachs of the eastern meadowlark and in 16 -of the western species. Of the former, one stomach contained 27 individuals. -Of 25 stomachs of western meadowlarks -taken in alfalfa fields of -Utah, 15 contained the alfalfa weevil. -In one stomach 23 adults were -found, in another 32 adults and 70 -larvæ, still another had 10 adults -and 40 larvæ, while a fourth had 4 -adults and 100 larvæ.</p> - -<p>Caterpillars form a very constant -element of the food, and in May -constitute over 24 per cent of the -whole. May is the month when the -dreaded cutworm begins its deadly -career, and then the lark does some -of its best work. Most of these -caterpillars are ground feeders, and -are overlooked by birds which habitually frequent trees, but the meadowlark -finds and devours them by thousands. The remainder of the insect food is made -up of ants, wasps, and spiders, with some bugs, including chinch bugs, and a -few scales.</p> - -<p>The vegetable food consists of grain and weed and other hard seeds. Grain -in general amounts to 11 per cent and weed and other seeds to 7 per cent. -Grain, principally corn, is eaten mostly in winter and early spring and consists, -therefore, of waste kernels; only a trifle is consumed in summer and -autumn, when it is most plentiful. No trace of sprouting grain was discovered. -Clover seed was found in only six stomachs, and but little in each. Seeds of -weeds, principally ragweed, barnyard grass, and smartweed, are eaten from -November to April, inclusive, but during the rest of the year are replaced by -insects.</p> - -<p>Briefly stated, more than half of the meadowlark’s food consists of harmful -insects; its vegetable food is composed either of noxious weeds or waste grain, -and the remainder is made up of useful beetles or neutral insects and spiders. -A strong point in the bird’s favor is that, although naturally an insect eater, it -is able to subsist on vegetable food, and consequently is not forced to migrate -in cold weather farther than is necessary to find ground free from snow.</p> - - - -<hr class="chap" /> -<h2><a name="THE_RED-WINGED_BLACKBIRDS" id="THE_RED-WINGED_BLACKBIRDS">THE RED-WINGED BLACKBIRDS.</a></h2> - - -<p>The red-winged or swamp blackbird<a name="FNanchor_41" id="FNanchor_41"></a><a href="#Footnote_41" class="fnanchor">[41]</a> in its various forms (<a href="#fig14">fig. 14</a>) is found -all over the United States and the region immediately to the north. While -<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_16" id="Page_16">« 16 »</a></span> -common in most of its range, its distribution is more or less local, mainly on -account of its partiality for marshes. It builds its nest over or near standing -water, in tall grass, rushes, or bushes. Owing to this peculiarity the bird may -be absent from large tracts of country which afford no swamps or marshes -suitable for nesting. It usually breeds in large colonies, though single families, -consisting of a male and several females, may sometimes be found in a small -slough, where each female builds her nest and rears her own little brood, while -her liege lord displays his brilliant colors and struts in the sunshine. In the -upper Mississippi Valley the species finds most favorable conditions, for the -countless prairie sloughs and the margins of the numerous shallow lakes afford -nesting sites for thousands of red-wings; and here are bred the immense flocks -which sometimes do so much damage to the grain fields of the West. After the -breeding season the birds congregate preparatory to migration, and remain -thus associated throughout the winter.</p> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_41" id="Footnote_41"></a><a href="#FNanchor_41"><span class="label">[41]</span></a> <i>Agelaius phœniceus.</i></p></div> - -<p>Three species and several subspecies of red-wings are recognized,<a name="FNanchor_42" id="FNanchor_42"></a><a href="#Footnote_42" class="fnanchor">[42]</a> but practically -no difference exists in the habits of these forms either in nesting or -feeding, except such as may result from local conditions. Most of the forms are -found on the Pacific side of the continent, and may be considered as included in -the following statements as to food and economic status.</p> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_42" id="Footnote_42"></a><a href="#FNanchor_42"><span class="label">[42]</span></a> <i>Agelaius phœniceus</i> (8 forms), <i>Agelaius gubernator</i>, and <i>Agelaius tricolor</i>.</p></div> - -<p>Many complaints have been made against the red-wing, and several States -have at times placed a bounty upon its head. It is said to cause great damage -to grain in the West, especially in the upper Mississippi Valley, but no complaints -come from the northeastern section, -where the bird is much less abundant -than in the West and South.</p> - -<div class="fig_left" style="width: 272px;"> -<a id="fig14"></a><img src="images/fig14.png" width="272" height="245" alt="" /> -<div class="fig_caption"><span class="smcap">Fig. 14.</span>—Red-winged blackbird. Length, about -9½ inches.</div> -</div> - -<p>Examination of 1,083 stomachs -showed that vegetable matter forms -74 per cent of the food, while animal -matter, mainly insects, forms but 20 -per cent. A little more than 10 per -cent consists of beetles, mostly -harmful species. Weevils, or snout -beetles, amount to 4 per cent of the -year’s food, but in June reach 25 -per cent. As weevils are among the -most harmful insects known, their -destruction should condone some, at -least, of the sins of which the bird -is accused. Grasshoppers constitute -nearly 5 per cent of the food, while -the rest of the animal matter is -made up of various insects, a few -snails, and crustaceans. The few -dragon flies found were probably -picked up dead, for they are too -active to be taken alive, unless by a bird of the flycatcher family. So far as the -insect food as a whole is concerned, the red-wing may be considered entirely -beneficial.</p> - -<p>The interest in the vegetable food of this bird centers around grain. Only -three kinds, corn, wheat, and oats, were found in the stomachs in appreciable -quantities. They aggregate but little more than 13 per cent of the whole food, -oats forming nearly half of this amount. In view of the many complaints that -the red-wing eats grain, this record is surprisingly small. The purple grackle -has been found to eat more than three times as much. In the case of the crow, -corn forms one-third of the food, so that the red-winged blackbird, whose diet -is made up of only a trifle more than one-eighth of grain, is really one of the -least destructive species. The most important item of the bird’s food, however, -is weed seed, which forms practically all of its food in winter and about 57 per -cent of the fare of the whole year. The principal weed seeds eaten are those -of ragweed, barnyard grass, and smartweed. That these seeds are preferred is -shown by the fact that the birds begin to eat them in August, when grain is still -readily obtainable, and continue feeding on them even after insects become -plentiful in April. The red-wing eats very little fruit and does practically no -harm to garden or orchard. Nearly seven-eighths of its food is made up of -weed seed or of insects injurious to agriculture, indicating unmistakably that -<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_17" id="Page_17">« 17 »</a></span> -the bird should be protected, except, perhaps, in a few places where it is overabundant.</p> - - - -<hr class="chap" /> -<h2><a name="BOBOLINK" id="BOBOLINK">BOBOLINK.</a></h2> - - -<div class="fig_right" style="width: 275px;"> -<a id="fig15"></a><img src="images/fig15.png" width="275" height="265" alt="" /> -<div class="fig_caption"><span class="smcap">Fig. 15.</span>—Bobolink, rice bird, or reed bird. -Length, about 7 inches.</div> -</div> - -<p>The bobolink, rice bird, or reed bird<a name="FNanchor_43" id="FNanchor_43"></a><a href="#Footnote_43" class="fnanchor">[43]</a> (<a href="#fig15">fig. 15</a>) is a common summer resident of -the United States, north of about latitude 40°, and from New England westward -to the Great Plains, wintering beyond our southern border. In New England there -are few birds about which so much romance clusters as this rollicking songster, -naturally associated with sunny June meadows; but in the South there are none -on whose head so many maledictions have been heaped on account of its fondness -for rice. During its sojourn in the Northern States it feeds mainly upon insects -and seeds of useless plants; but -while rearing its young, insects constitute -its chief food, and almost the -exclusive diet of its brood. After -the young are able to fly, the whole -family gathers into a small flock -and begins to live almost entirely -upon vegetable food. This consists -for the most part of weed seeds, -since in the North these birds do -not appear to attack grain to any -great extent. They eat a few oats, -but their stomachs do not reveal a -great quantity of this or any other -grain. As the season advances they -gather into larger flocks and move -southward, until by the end of -August nearly all have left their -breeding grounds. On their way -they frequent the reedy marshes -about the mouths of rivers and on -the inland waters of the coast region -and subsist largely upon wild rice. -In the Middle States, during their southward migration, they are commonly -known as reed birds, and becoming very fat are treated as game.</p> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_43" id="Footnote_43"></a><a href="#FNanchor_43"><span class="label">[43]</span></a> <i>Dolichonyx oryzivorus.</i></p></div> - -<p>Formerly, when the low marshy shores of the Carolinas and some of the -more southern States were devoted to rice culture the bobolinks made great -havoc both upon the sprouting rice in spring and upon the ripening grain on -their return migration in the fall. With a change in the rice-raising districts, -however, this damage is no longer done.</p> - - - -<hr class="chap" /> -<h2><a name="CROW" id="CROW">CROW.</a></h2> - - -<p>In one or another of its geographic races the common crow<a name="FNanchor_44" id="FNanchor_44"></a><a href="#Footnote_44" class="fnanchor">[44]</a> (<a href="#fig16">fig. 16</a>) breeds in -great numbers throughout the States east of the Plains and from the Gulf well -up into Canada, while in less abundance it is found in California and in the -Northwestern States. During the colder months a southern migratory movement -brings most of these birds within the borders of the United States, and -at about the latitude of Philadelphia and southern Illinois we find them congregating -nightly in roosts. Farmers dwelling in the vicinity of such roosts -frequently suffer losses to shocked corn.</p> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_44" id="Footnote_44"></a><a href="#FNanchor_44"><span class="label">[44]</span></a> <i>Corvus brachyrhynchos.</i></p></div> - -<p>In fact none of our native birds so much concerns the average farmer of the -Eastern States as the common crow. Many of our present criticisms of this -bird, as its pulling sprouting corn, feeding on ripening ears, damaging fruits of -various kinds, destroying poultry and wild birds, and disseminating diseases -of live stock, were common complaints in the days of the early colonists. Many -of the virtues of the crow, now quite generally recognized, also have been -matters of record for many years. In recent times, however, scientific study -of these problems, including the examination of the stomachs of hundreds of -crows secured in every month of the year and under a variety of conditions, -has enabled us to render a much fairer verdict than was formerly possible.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_18" id="Page_18">« 18 »</a></span></p> - -<p>The crow is practically omnivorous. During spring and early summer any -form of insect life seems to make a desirable item in its diet, and in winter -when hard pressed nothing in the animal or vegetable kingdoms which contains -a morsel of nutriment is overlooked.</p> - -<p>The insect food of the crow, which comprises about a fifth of its yearly -sustenance, does much to atone for its misdemeanors. Grasshoppers, May -beetles and their larvæ (white grubs), caterpillars, weevils, and wireworms -stand out prominently. In 1,103 stomachs examined these highly injurious -forms comprised over 80 per cent of the insect food. Grasshoppers are naturally -taken in greatest abundance late in the season, September being the -month of largest consumption, when they form about a fifth of the total -food. May beetles and white grubs are eaten in every month except January, -but occur most prominently in May. In June caterpillars are a favorite food, -and weevils of various kinds are taken in varying quantities throughout summer -and fall. About half of the remaining 20 per cent of insect food is composed of -beneficial ground beetles, ladybirds, predacious bugs, and parasitic wasps, and -related forms, the rest consisting of neutral or injurious forms. Numerous -instances are on record where fields badly infested with white grubs or grasshoppers -have been favorite resorts of crows, whose voracity has resulted in -a material suppression of the pest. When the amount of food required to -sustain the individual crow is considered, the work of these birds appears all -the more important. Single stomachs -containing upward of 50 -grasshoppers are not uncommon. -Thus in its choice of insect food -the crow is rendering an important -service to the farmer.</p> - -<div class="fig_left" style="width: 281px;"> -<a id="fig16"></a><img src="images/fig16.png" width="281" height="201" alt="" /> -<div class="fig_caption"><span class="smcap">Fig. 16.</span>—Crow. Length, about 19 inches.</div> -</div> - - -<p>In the other animal food of the -crow are several items of the utmost -economic importance. Spiders -are taken in considerable -numbers in May and June, but the -yearly total is a little over 1 per -cent of the food. In early spring -crawfish are eagerly sought, and -other aquatic food as fish and mollusks lend variety to the crow’s -bill of fare the year round. In the -consumption of toads, salamanders, -frogs, and some snakes, which together -compose a little over 2 per cent of the yearly food, the crow is doubtless -doing harm. Small rodents occurred in the stomachs collected nearly every -month, but it is often difficult to determine whether small mammals found in -birds’ stomachs were taken alive or found dead.</p> - -<p>From its carrion-eating habits the crow has been unfairly criticized as a -disseminator of live-stock diseases. While this may be to some extent just, the -fact that there are many other important carriers which lie largely beyond our -control, shows that we must seek final relief only through the strictest methods -of sanitation.</p> - -<p>The nest-robbing habit of the crow, long a serious criticism, is verified by -stomach analysis. Fifty of the 1,103 crows examined had fed on wild birds or -their eggs, and the eggs of domestic fowls were found slightly more frequently. -The crow’s habit of rummaging about garbage piles may explain much of this -latter material.</p> - -<p>Of the vegetable food, corn, which is eaten every month, is the most important -item and forms about a third of the yearly diet. Much of this, however, -must be considered waste. Over 60 per cent is consumed from the first -of November to the end of March. During the periods when corn is sprouting -and when in the “roasting-ear” stage the crow is eating this grain at a rate -considerably less than the yearly average, and the months of smallest consumption -are July and August. At times, however, the damage to corn becomes a -serious problem, and were it not possible to make use of such deterrents as coal -tar upon seed corn there would be little friendship for the crow in some sections -of the East. The “pulling” of corn is a trait most prevalent in small-field -areas. Wheat and oats suffer similar damage at times, especially in the -Northwestern States, where these grains predominate. About the only safeguard -to ripening grain is the constant use of powder and shot or the scarecrow.</p> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_19" id="Page_19">« 19 »</a></span></p> - -<p>Various kinds of cultivated fruits also are eaten, and local damage to such -crops as apples, melons, peas, beans, peanuts, and almonds is occasionally reported. -In long, rigorous winters, the crow, like other birds, resorts to the fruit -of numerous wild plants, as dogwood, sour gum, hackberry, smilax, and the -several species of sumac and poison ivy.</p> - -<p>Damage to the eggs of poultry may be reduced to a minimum by careful -housing of laying hens, and the farmer can protect his sprouting grain to a -large extent by the use of tar-coated seed. It will be well also to keep the -crow within reasonable numbers on game preserves and public parks where it -is desired to encourage the nesting of smaller birds. While legal protection is -not needed for so wary an individual as the crow, it seems well, where local -conditions have not aggravated some particular shortcomings of the bird, to -allow it to continue the good services rendered to man in the destruction of -noxious insects.</p> - - - -<hr class="chap" /> -<h2><a name="BLUE_JAY" id="BLUE_JAY">BLUE JAY.</a></h2> - - -<p>The blue jay<a name="FNanchor_45" id="FNanchor_45"></a><a href="#Footnote_45" class="fnanchor">[45]</a> (<a href="#fig17">fig. 17</a>) is a conspicuous member of our bird population east -of the Plains, especially in autumn when his brilliant plumage contrasts vividly -with the brown foliage. Even in winter he stays with us, though at this time -he is less common along our northern border. In spring and summer, while by -no means uncommon, the blue jay is not so often noticed, as the retiring disposition -which he assumes during the breeding season assists in protecting him -from enemies. This also allows him to carry on with considerable impunity -that inglorious practice of nest robbing -of which, in a measure, he -has been rightfully accused.</p> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_45" id="Footnote_45"></a><a href="#FNanchor_45"><span class="label">[45]</span></a> <i>Cyanocitta cristata.</i></p></div> - -<div class="fig_right" style="width: 265px;"> -<a id="fig17"></a><img src="images/fig17.png" width="265" height="177" alt="" /> -<div class="fig_caption"><span class="smcap">Fig. 17.</span>—Blue jay. Length, about 11½ -inches.</div> -</div> - -<p>Examination of 530 stomachs -collected at all times of the year -in 30 of our Eastern States and -Canada shows that insects comprise -about 22 per cent of the yearly -sustenance. About three-fourths of -these are injurious, the remainder -being neutral or beneficial. Of the -injurious insects grasshoppers form -the largest portion; in August -nearly a fifth of the food. Caterpillars -are conspicuous in July -and August and at this time average -about a tenth of the stomach -contents. Both laboratory investigations and field observations have established -the fact that in winter the eggs of the tent caterpillar and the hibernating -larvæ of the brown-tail moth in New England are eagerly sought. Scarabæid -beetles form about 4 per cent of the yearly food, and click beetles and wireworms -about 1 per cent. Of the beneficial forms ground beetles (3 per cent) -and hymenopterous insects, part of which are parasitic (2.5 percent), are taken -most frequently. A few other invertebrates, as spiders, millipedes, mollusks, and -crustaceans, also are eaten throughout the year.</p> - -<p>In the consideration of the vertebrate food of the blue jay we are confronted -with the problem of the destruction of wild birds and their eggs. Special search -was made for every possible trace of such material in the stomachs, and in 6 -of the 530 were found the remains of wild birds or their eggs. In February -two jays had killed a small bird apiece; in May one had robbed a nest of eggs; -in June two had taken a small bird and a clutch of eggs, respectively; and in -August another had robbed a nest. As this trait of the jay appears to be most -pronounced during its own breeding season, it is quite possible for many birds -which have suffered from his boldness early in the season to raise another -brood unmolested. Thirty-nine of the 530 jays examined had fed on hen’s eggs -Much of this food, however, was picked up about rubbish heaps to which the -jay, like other members of the crow family, is partial. While the result of -stomach analysis would appear to belittle this fault of the blue jay, it is doubtless -quite characteristic of the bird under favorable conditions.</p> - -<p>Complaint that the jay is the source of considerable damage to corn in the -fall has been verified to a certain degree by stomach examination. This grain -<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_20" id="Page_20">« 20 »</a></span> -is taken in every month of the year, but in greater quantities during winter and -early spring, when much of it is necessarily waste, and it forms about 18 per -cent of the yearly food. Cultivated fruits of various kinds are eaten from -June to the end of the year, and the To per cent taken in July apparently justifies -complaints against the bird on this score. The favorite vegetable food of the -blue jay is mast of various kinds, acorns predominating, but beechnuts, chestnuts, -chinquapins, and hazelnuts also are relished. This food is important in -every month but July and August, the yearly average being over 43 per cent, -and from October to March it constitutes about two-thirds of the diet. Occasionally -harm is done by feeding also on cultivated nuts, as pecans. Wild fruits -are eaten during the summer and fall and constitute about 7 per cent of the -yearly sustenance.</p> - -<p>The blue jay probably renders its best services to man in destroying grasshoppers -late in the season and in feeding on hibernating insects and their eggs, -as they do in the case of the tent caterpillar and brown-tail moth. Such forest -insects as buprestid beetles and weevils of various kinds also fall as their prey.</p> - -<p>The blue jay’s vegetable food, with the exception of some cultivated fruit and -corn in the fall, is largely neutral. The severest criticism against the species is -the destruction of other birds and their eggs. Where we wish to attract the -latter in large numbers about our dooryards, in our parks, and in game preserves, -it will be well not to allow the jays to become too abundant.</p> - - - -<hr class="chap" /> -<h2><a name="PACIFIC_COAST_JAYS" id="PACIFIC_COAST_JAYS">PACIFIC COAST JAYS.</a></h2> - - -<p>In California and adjacent States two species of jays are much in evidence -under several more or less well-marked forms.</p> - -<p>The Steller jay<a name="FNanchor_46" id="FNanchor_46"></a><a href="#Footnote_46" class="fnanchor">[46]</a> much resembles the eastern bird, but it is more shy and -retiring and seldom visits the orchard or vicinity of the ranch buildings. -Stomach examination shows that its food does not radically differ from that of -the eastern blue jay. As is the case with that bird, a very considerable part -of the food consists of mast, together with a little fruit and some insects. The -insects are largely wasps, with some beetles and grasshoppers. The jay also -eats some grain, which is probably waste or volunteer. No complaints, so far -as known, are made against this bird. Until it shall become less wary it is not -likely to trespass to a serious extent upon the farmer’s preserve.</p> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_46" id="Footnote_46"></a><a href="#FNanchor_46"><span class="label">[46]</span></a> <i>Cyanocitta stelleri.</i></p></div> - -<p>The California jay,<a name="FNanchor_47" id="FNanchor_47"></a><a href="#Footnote_47" class="fnanchor">[47]</a> although of a different genus, more nearly resembles its -eastern relative in food habits and actions. It freely visits the stockyards near -ranch buildings, and orchards and gardens. As a fruit stealer it is notorious. -One instance is recorded where seven jays were shot from a prune tree, one -after the other, the dead bodies being left under the tree until all were killed. -So eager were the birds to get the fruit that the report of the gun and the sight -of their dead did not deter them from coming to the tree. In orchards in -canyons or on hillsides adjacent to chaparral or other cover great mischief is -done by this bird. In one such case an orchard was under observation at a time -when the prune crop was ripening, and jays in a continuous stream were seen -to come down a small ravine to the orchard, prey upon the fruit, and return.</p> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_47" id="Footnote_47"></a><a href="#FNanchor_47"><span class="label">[47]</span></a> <i>Aphelocoma californica.</i></p></div> - -<p>Fruit stealing, however, is only one of the sins of the California jay. That -it robs hens’ nests is universal testimony. A case is reported of a hen having -a nest under a clump of bushes; every day a jay came to a tree a few rods away, -and when it heard the cackle of the hen announcing a new egg it flew at once -to the nest. At the same time the mistress of the house hastened to the spot -to secure the prize, but in most cases the jay won the race. This is only one of -many similar cases recounted. The jays have learned just what the cackle of -the hen means. Another case more serious is that related by a man engaged -in raising white leghorn fowls on a ranch several miles up a canyon. He -stated that when the chicks were very young the jays attacked and killed -them by a few blows of the beak and then pecked open the skull and ate out -the brains. In spite of all efforts to protect the chicks and kill the jays the -losses in this way were serious.</p> - -<p>Examination of the stomachs of 326 California jays shows that 27 per cent -of the contents for the year consists of animal matter and 73 per cent of vegetable. -Although the great bulk of the animal food is made up of insects, the -remains of eggshells and birds’ bones appear much too often. The insect food -is fairly well distributed among the more common orders, but grasshoppers are -<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_21" id="Page_21">« 21 »</a></span> -slightly the most numerous and constitute 4.5 per cent of the year’s food. In -July, August, and September, however, the amount is 14, 18, and 19 per cent, -respectively. Four per cent of the food consists of wasps, bees, etc., but in the -three months named they constitute 15, 7, and 9 per cent, respectively. A -worker honeybee found in each of two stomachs is rather surprising, for it is -unusual to find a bird like the jay eating many of these active and elusive -insects, which enter into the diet of the flycatchers. The remainder of the -insect food is pretty evenly distributed among beetles, bugs, flies, and caterpillars. -Eggshells were found in 21 stomachs and birds’ bones in 5. Six -stomachs contained the bones of mammals and two those of a lizard. No bird -has a worse reputation for nest robbing than has the eastern jay, and yet of -530 stomachs of the eastern species only 6 contained eggshells or the bones of -birds. This comparison serves to show what a marauder and nest thief the -California jay really is.</p> - -<p>In its vegetable diet this bird much resembles its eastern relative, the most -remarkable difference being in the matter of fruit eating. With greater opportunities -the California bird has developed a greater appetite for fruit and -indulges it to the fullest extent. Remains of fruit were found in 220 of the 326 -stomachs. The percentage for the year is only 16, but for the four months of -June, July, August, and September it is 44, 33, 53, and 25, respectively. Cherries, -apricots, and prunes are the favorites among cultivated fruits, and elderberries -are relished to some extent. Grain, which was found in 48 stomachs, -amounts to 6 per cent of the food of the year. Practically all of it was taken -in the four months above mentioned, but it is not probable that much damage -is done by the jay in this respect. The major portion of the grain was oats. -What was not wild was probably simply scattered grain gleaned after the -harvest. Mast is eaten by the California jay from September to March, inclusive, -and constitutes during most of that period one of the principal elements of -its food. In this respect the bird shows a remarkable similarity to the eastern -species. A few weed seeds and other miscellaneous items make up the balance -of the vegetable food.</p> - -<p>In summing up from an economic point of view the character of the food -of the California jay, it must be conceded that it is not all that could be wished. -Its taste for birds’ eggs and fruit is entirely too pronounced, and at present the -species is superabundant in California. While the natural food supply of the -bird has been lessened by bringing the woods and brushy canyons under cultivation, -the same areas have been planted to fruit, and naturally the jay takes -the fruit as an acceptable substitute. A considerable reduction of the bird’s -numbers would appear to be the only effective remedy.</p> - - - -<hr class="chap" /> -<h2><a name="THE_PHOEBES" id="THE_PHOEBES">THE PHŒBES.</a></h2> - - -<p>Among the early spring arrivals to their northern homes none is more welcome -than the phœbe (<a href="#fig18">fig. 18</a>). The common phœbe<a name="FNanchor_48" id="FNanchor_48"></a><a href="#Footnote_48" class="fnanchor">[48]</a> breeds throughout the -United States east of the Great Plains, and winters from the South Atlantic -and Gulf States southward. Its western relative, the black phœbe,<a name="FNanchor_49" id="FNanchor_49"></a><a href="#Footnote_49" class="fnanchor">[49]</a> is found -from Texas west to the Pacific coast, which it occupies as far north as Washington, -replacing through most of this region the common or eastern form.</p> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_48" id="Footnote_48"></a><a href="#FNanchor_48"><span class="label">[48]</span></a> <i>Sayornis phœbe.</i></p> - -<p><a name="Footnote_49" id="Footnote_49"></a><a href="#FNanchor_49"><span class="label">[49]</span></a> <i>Sayornis nigricans.</i></p></div> - -<p>Though naturally building its nest under an overhanging cliff of rock or -earth, or in the mouth of a cave, the preference of the eastern species for the -vicinity of farm buildings is so marked that in the more thickly settled parts -of the country the bird is seldom seen at any great distance from a farmhouse, -except where a bridge spanning a stream affords a secure spot for a nest. Its -confiding disposition renders it a great favorite, and consequently it is seldom -disturbed.</p> - -<p>The phœbe subsists almost exclusively upon insects, most of which are caught -upon the wing. An examination of 370 stomachs showed that over 89 per cent -of the year’s food consists of insects and spiders, while wild fruit constitutes -the remainder. The insects belong chiefly to noxious species, and include many -click beetles, May beetles, and weevils. Other beetles, belonging to 21 families -that were identified, make up 10.65 per cent. They appear to be eaten very -regularly in every month, but the most are taken in spring and early summer. -May is the month of maximum consumption, with 20.43 per cent. Beetles altogether -amount to 15.3 per cent, which places them second in rank of the items -<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_22" id="Page_22">« 22 »</a></span> -of animal food. The notorious cotton-boll weevil was found in six stomachs -taken in the cotton fields of Texas and Louisiana, and five individuals of the -strawberry weevil were taken from one collected in Texas. Many other beetles -contained in the stomachs are equally harmful, but are not so widely known. -Such are the corn leaf-beetle, which feeds upon corn; the 12-spotted cucumber -beetle and the striped cucumber beetle, both of which seriously injure and -sometimes destroy cucumber and squash vines; and the locust leaf miner, -which is sometimes so numerous that all the locust trees over large areas are -blasted as by fire.</p> - -<p>In the phœbe’s diet hymenopterous insects stand at the head, as in the case -with most of the flycatchers. They are eaten with great regularity and are -the largest item in nearly every month. A few are useful parasitic species, -but these are offset by a number of sawfly larvæ, which are very harmful -insects. Ants were found in 24 stomachs. No honeybees were identified. In -their season grasshoppers are much relished, while wasps of various forms, -many flies of species that annoy cattle, and a few bugs and spiders are also -eaten regularly. It is evident that a pair of phœbes must materially reduce -the number of insects near a garden or field, as the birds often, if not always, -raise two broods a year, and each brood numbers from four to six young.</p> - -<p>There is hardly a more useful species, about the farm than the phœbe, and -it should receive every encouragement. To furnish nesting boxes is helpful, -but not necessary, as it usually prefers a more open situation, like a shed or -a nook under the eaves, but it -should be protected from cats and -other marauders.</p> - -<div class="fig_left" style="width: 271px;"> -<a id="fig18"></a><img src="images/fig18.png" width="271" height="248" alt="" /> -<div class="fig_caption"><i>Fig. 18.</i>—Phœbe. Length, about 6½ inches.</div> -</div> - -<p>The black phœbe has the same -habits as its eastern relative, both -as to selection of food and nesting -sites, preferring for the latter purpose -some structure of man, as a -shed or, better still, a bridge over a -stream of water, and the preference -of the black phœbe for the vicinity -of water is very pronounced. One -may always be found at a stream -or pool and often at a watering -trough by the roadside.</p> - -<p>Careful study of the habits of the -bird shows that it obtains a large -portion of its food about wet places. -While camping beside a stream in -California the writer took some -pains to observe the habits of the -black phœbe. The nesting season -was over, and the birds had nothing to do but eat. This they appeared to be -doing all the time. When first observed in the morning, at the first glimmer of -daylight, a phœbe was always found flitting from rock to rock, although it was -so dusky that the bird could hardly be seen. This activity was kept up all day. -Even in the evening, when it was so dark that notes were written by the aid of -the camp fire, the phœbe was still engaged in its work of collecting, though it -was difficult to understand how it could catch insects when there was scarcely -light enough to see the bird. Exploration of the stream showed that every -portion of it was patrolled by a phœbe, that each one apparently did not range -over more than 12 or 13 rods of water, and that sometimes two or three were in -close proximity.</p> - -<p>The number of insects destroyed in a year by the black phœbe is enormous. -Fortunately, the examination of stomachs has supplemented observation in -the field, and we are enabled to give precise details. Of the 333 stomachs examined, -every one contained insects as the great bulk of the food. Only 15 -contained any vegetable food at all, and in no case was it a considerable part -of the contents of the stomach. The insects eaten were mostly wasps, bugs, -and flies, but many beetles also were destroyed.</p> - -<p>Useful beetles belonging to three families amount to 2.8 per cent of the -food. Other beetles of harmful or neutral species reach 10.5 per cent. Wasps, -the largest item of the food, were found in 252 stomachs and were the whole -contents of 15. The average for the year is 35 per cent. Parasitic species -were noted, but they were very few. Ants were found in 48 stomachs, and for -<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_23" id="Page_23">« 23 »</a></span> -a short time in midsummer they constitute a notable part of the food. Various -wild bees and wasps make up the bulk of this item. No honeybees were found.</p> - -<p>Bugs in various forms constitute 10.56 per cent and are eaten in every month -but May. Stinkbugs appear to be the favorites, as they were contained in 10 -stomachs. Plant lice were found in one stomach. Flies, forming the second -largest item, were found in 97 stomachs and completely filled 3. They constitute -the most regular article in the black phœbe’s diet. The maximum consumption -occurs in April, 64.3 per cent. The black phœbe well merits its title -of flycatcher.</p> - -<p>Moths and caterpillars amount to 8.2 per cent of the food. They were found -in 72 stomachs, of which 51 contained the adult moths and 28 the larvæ or -caterpillars. One stomach was entirely filled with adults. This is one of the -few birds studied by the writer that eats more moths than caterpillars, for as -a rule the caterpillars are largely in excess. Flycatchers, taking their food -upon the wing, would naturally prove exceptions to the rule. Crickets are -evidently not a favorite food of the black phœbe, as they amount to only 2.45 -per cent. They were found in 39 stomachs, but usually the amount in each -was small, though one stomach was entirely filled with them. Grasshoppers did -not appear. Dragon flies were eaten to some extent, and these illustrate the -fondness of the species for the neighborhood of water.</p> - -<p>The vegetable matter eaten consisted chiefly of small wild fruits of no -economic importance.</p> - -<p>Another phœbe inhabiting the Western States and breeding as far north as -Alaska is the Say phœbe.<a name="FNanchor_50" id="FNanchor_50"></a><a href="#Footnote_50" class="fnanchor">[50]</a> Investigation of its food was based on the examination -of 86 stomachs, and while none were available for the months when -insects are most numerous, the bird proved to be one of the most exclusively -insectivorous of the family. That it takes a few useful insects can not be -denied, but these are far outnumbered by the harmful ones it destroys, and the -balance is clearly in favor of the bird. Its vegetable food amounts to only 2 -per cent and is made up of a little wild fruit, seeds, and rubbish.</p> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_50" id="Footnote_50"></a><a href="#FNanchor_50"><span class="label">[50]</span></a> <i>Sayornis sayus.</i></p></div> - - - - -<h2><a name="THE_KINGBIRDS" id="THE_KINGBIRDS">THE KINGBIRDS.</a></h2> - - -<p>The well-known eastern kingbird<a name="FNanchor_51" id="FNanchor_51"></a><a href="#Footnote_51" class="fnanchor">[51]</a> (<a href="#fig19">fig. 19</a>) is essentially a lover of the -orchard, though groves and the edge of forests were probably its original habitat. -It breeds in the States east of the Rocky Mountains, and less commonly in -the Great Basin and on the Pacific coast. Its hostility to hawks and crows is -proverbial, and for this reason a family of kingbirds is a desirable adjunct -to a poultry yard. On one occasion in the knowledge of the writer a hawk -which attacked a brood of young turkeys was pounced upon and so severely -buffeted by a pair of kingbirds whose nest was near by that the would-be robber -was glad to escape without his prey. Song birds that nest near the kingbird -are similarly protected.</p> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_51" id="Footnote_51"></a><a href="#FNanchor_51"><span class="label">[51]</span></a> <i>Tyrannus tyrannus.</i></p></div> - -<p>The kingbird is largely insectivorous. It is a true flycatcher and takes on -the wing a large part of its food. It does not, however, confine itself to this -method of hunting, but picks up some insects from trees and weeds, and even -descends to the ground in search of myriapods or thousand legs. The chief -complaint against the species by both professional bee keepers and others has -been that it preys largely upon honeybees. One bee raiser in Iowa, suspecting -the kingbirds of feeding upon his bees, shot a number near his hives; but when -the stomachs of the birds were examined by an expert entomologist, not a trace -of honeybees could be found.</p> - -<p>An examination of 665 stomachs collected in various parts of the country -was made by the Biological Survey, but only 22 were found to contain remains -of honeybees. In these 22 stomachs there were in all 61 honeybees, of which -51 were drones, 8 were certainly workers, and the remaining 2 were too badly -broken to be further identified.</p> - -<div class="fig_left" style="width: 266px;"> -<a id="fig19"></a><img src="images/fig19.png" width="266" height="279" alt="" /> -<div class="fig_caption"><span class="smcap">Fig. 19.</span>—Kingbird. Length, about 8½ inches.</div> -</div> - -<p>The insects that constitute the great bulk of the food of the bird are noxious -species, largely beetles—May beetles, click beetles (the larvæ of which are -known as wire worms), weevils, which prey upon fruit and grain, and a host -of others. Wasps, wild bees, and ants are conspicuous elements of the food, far -outnumbering the hive bees. During summer many grasshoppers and crickets, -as well as leaf hoppers and other bugs, also are eaten. In the stomachs -examined were a number of robber flies—insects which prey largely upon other -<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_24" id="Page_24">« 24 »</a></span> -insects, especially honeybees, and which are known to commit in this way -extensive depredations. It is thus evident that the kingbird by destroying -these flies actually does good work for the apiarist. The 26 robber flies found -in the stomachs may be considered more than an equivalent for the 8 worker -honeybees already mentioned. A few caterpillars are eaten, mostly belonging -to the group commonly known as cutworms, all the species of which are -harmful.</p> - -<p>About 11 per cent of the food consists of small native fruits, comprising some -30 common species of the roadsides and thickets, as dogwood berries, elderberries, -and wild grapes. The kingbird is not reported as eating cultivated -fruit to an injurious extent, and it is very doubtful if this is ever the case.</p> - -<p>In the Western States the Arkansas kingbird<a name="FNanchor_52" id="FNanchor_52"></a><a href="#Footnote_52" class="fnanchor">[52]</a> is not so domestic in its habits -as its eastern relative, preferring to live among scattering oaks on lonely hillsides, -rather than in orchards about ranch buildings. The work it does, however, -in the destruction of noxious insects fully equals that of any member -of its family. Like other flycatchers, it subsists mostly upon insects taken in -midair, though it eats a number of grasshoppers, probably taken from the -ground. The bulk of its food consists of beetles, bugs, wasps, and wild bees. -Like its eastern representative, it has been accused of feeding to an injurious -extent upon honeybees. In an examination of 62 stomachs of this species, -great care was take to identify every insect or fragment that had any resemblance -to a honeybee; as a result, -30 honeybees were identified, of -which 29 were males or drones and 1 -a worker. These were contained in -four stomachs, and were the sole contents -of three; in the fourth they -constituted 99 per cent of the food. -It is evident that the bee-eating habit -is only occasional and accidental, -rather than habitual; and it is also -evident that if this ratio of drones -to workers were maintained, the bird -would be of more benefit than harm -to the apiary.</p> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_52" id="Footnote_52"></a><a href="#FNanchor_52"><span class="label">[52]</span></a> <i>Tyrannus verticalis.</i></p></div> - -<p>The Cassin kingbird<a name="FNanchor_53" id="FNanchor_53"></a><a href="#Footnote_53" class="fnanchor">[53]</a> has a more -southerly range than the Arkansas -fly-catcher. Examination of a number -of stomachs shows that its food -habits are similar to those of others -of the group.</p> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_53" id="Footnote_53"></a><a href="#FNanchor_53"><span class="label">[53]</span></a> <i>Tyrannus vociferans.</i></p></div> - -<p>Three points seem to be clearly -established in regard to the food of -the kingbirds—(1) that about 90 per -cent consists of insects, mostly injurious -species; (2) that the alleged -habit of preying upon honeybees is much less prevalent than has been supposed, -and probably does not result in any great damage; and (3) that the vegetable -food consists almost entirely of wild fruits which have no economic value.</p> - -<p>All of the kingbirds are of the greatest importance to the farmer and fruit -grower, as they destroy vast numbers of harmful insects, and do no appreciable -damage to any product of cultivation.</p> - - - -<hr class="chap" /> -<h2><a name="NIGHTHAWK" id="NIGHTHAWK">NIGHTHAWK.</a></h2> - - -<p>The nighthawk, or bull-bat<a name="FNanchor_54" id="FNanchor_54"></a><a href="#Footnote_54" class="fnanchor">[54]</a> breeds throughout most of the United States and -Canada, and winters in South America. It is strictly insectivorous, and hence -does no damage to crops. The only charge that can be made against the bird -is that it destroys some useful insects, but these are greatly in the minority in -its food.</p> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_54" id="Footnote_54"></a><a href="#FNanchor_54"><span class="label">[54]</span></a> <i>Chordeiles virginianus.</i></p></div> - -<p>Nighthawks are so expert in flight that no insects can escape them. In -their capacious mouths they sweep up everything from the largest moths and -dragon flies to the tiniest ants and gnats, and in this way sometimes gather -most remarkable collections of insects. Several stomachs have contained 50 -or more different kinds, and the number of individuals ran into the thousands.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_25" id="Page_25">« 25 »</a></span></p> - -<p>Nearly a fourth of the birds’ total food is composed of ants. These insects -are generally annoying and often very injurious, especially on account of their -damage to stored products and because of their habit of fostering destructive -plant lice. More than a fifth of the nighthawk’s food consists of June bugs, -dung beetles, and other beetles of the leaf-chafer family. These are the adults -of white grubs, noted pests, and even as adults many members of the family -are decidedly harmful.</p> - -<p>Numerous other injurious beetles, as click beetles, wood borers, and weevils, -are relished. True bugs, moths, flies, grasshoppers, and crickets also are -Important elements of the food. Several species of mosquitoes, including the -transmitter of malaria, are eaten. Other well-known pests consumed by the -nighthawk are Colorado potato beetles, cucumber beetles, rice, clover-leaf, and -cotton-boll weevils, bill bugs, bark beetles, squash bugs, and moths of the -cotton worm.</p> - -<p>Nighthawks are much less numerous than formerly, chiefly because of -wanton shooting. They are given full legal protection almost everywhere, -and citizens should see that the law is obeyed. The bird is far too useful and -attractive to be persecuted.</p> - - - -<hr class="chap" /> -<h2><a name="THE_WOODPECKERS" id="THE_WOODPECKERS">THE WOODPECKERS.</a></h2> - - -<div class="fig_right" style="width: 278px;"> -<a id="fig20"></a><img src="images/fig20.png" width="278" height="312" alt="" /> -<div class="fig_caption"><span class="smcap">Fig. 20.</span>—Hairy woodpecker. Length, about 9 -inches.</div> -</div> - -<p>Five or six species of woodpeckers -are familiarly known -throughout eastern United States, -and in the West are replaced by -others of similar habits. Several -species remain in the Northern -States through the entire year, -while others are more or less migratory.</p> - -<p>Farmers are prone to look upon -woodpeckers with suspicion. When -the birds are seen scrambling over -fruit trees and pecking holes in -the bark, it is concluded that they -must be doing harm. Careful observers, -however, have noticed that, -excepting a single species, these -birds rarely leave any conspicuous -mark on a healthy tree, except -when it is affected by wood-boring -larvæ, which are accurately located, -dislodged, and devoured by -the woodpecker.</p> - -<p>Two of the best-known woodpeckers, -the hairy woodpecker<a name="FNanchor_55" id="FNanchor_55"></a><a href="#Footnote_55" class="fnanchor">[55]</a> (<a href="#fig20">fig. 20</a>) and the downy woodpecker,<a name="FNanchor_56" id="FNanchor_56"></a><a href="#Footnote_56" class="fnanchor">[56]</a> including -their races, range over the greater part of the United States. They differ -chiefly in size, their colors being practically the same. The males, like those -of many other woodpeckers, are distinguished by a scarlet patch on the head. -An examination of many stomachs of these two species shows that from two-thirds -to three-fourths of the food consists of insects, chiefly noxious kinds. -Wood-boring beetles, both adults and larvæ are conspicuous, and with them are -associated many caterpillars, mostly species that burrow into trees. Next in -importance are the ants that live in decaying wood, all of which are sought by -woodpeckers and eaten in great quantities. Many ants are particularly harmful -to timber, for if they find a small spot of decay in the vacant burrow of a wood -borer, they enlarge the hole, and, as their colony is always on the increase, -continue to eat away the wood until the whole trunk is honeycombed. Moreover, -they are not accessible to birds generally, and could pursue their career of -destruction unmolested were it not that the woodpeckers, with beaks and -tongues especially fitted for such work, dig out and devour them. It is thus -evident that woodpeckers are great conservators of forests. To them more than -to any other agency we owe the preservation of timber from hordes of destructive -insects.</p> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_55" id="Footnote_55"></a><a href="#FNanchor_55"><span class="label">[55]</span></a> <i>Dryobates villosus.</i></p></div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_56" id="Footnote_56"></a><a href="#FNanchor_56"><span class="label">[56]</span></a> <i>Dryobates pubescens.</i></p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_26" id="Page_26">« 26 »</a></span></p> -</div> - -<div class="fig_left" style="width: 267px;"> -<a id="fig21"></a><img src="images/fig21.png" width="267" height="221" alt="" /> -<div class="fig_caption"><span class="smcap">Fig. 21.</span>—Flicker. Length, about 12½ inches. </div> -</div> - -<p>One of the larger woodpeckers familiar to everyone is the flicker, or golden-winged -woodpecker<a name="FNanchor_57" id="FNanchor_57"></a><a href="#Footnote_57" class="fnanchor">[57]</a> (<a href="#fig21">fig. 21</a>), which is generally distributed throughout the -United States from the Atlantic coast to the Rocky Mountains. There it is -replaced by the red-shafted flicker,<a name="FNanchor_58" id="FNanchor_58"></a><a href="#Footnote_58" class="fnanchor">[58]</a> which extends westward to the Pacific. -The two species are as nearly identical -in food habits as their respective -environments will allow. The -flickers, while genuine woodpeckers, -differ somewhat in habits from the -rest of the family, and are frequently -seen searching for food upon the -ground. Like the downy and hairy -woodpeckers, they feed upon wood-boring -grubs and ants, but the number -of ants eaten is much greater -than that eaten by the other two -species. Of the flickers’ stomachs -examined, three were completely -filled with ants. Two of these contained -more than 3,000 individuals -each, while the third contained fully -5,000. These ants belong to species -which live in the ground. It is these -insects for which the flicker searches -when it runs about in the grass, although some grasshoppers also are then -taken. The flicker’s habit of pecking holes in buildings sometimes greatly -annoys his human friends, and it is particularly noticeable in the California -species. Observation has shown that the object of the work is to obtain shelter -for the winter. In the East most of the flickers are migratory, and only a few -remain North where shelter is necessary. These generally find a safe retreat -in the hollow tree in which they nested. In California, however, where the -birds do not migrate, trees are not so -abundant as in the East, and consequently -buildings are brought into -requisition, and in them holes are -drilled, usually under the eaves, -where snug nights’ lodgings are -found. Often a dozen holes may be -seen in one building. Barns or other -outbuildings are usually selected, -though churches sometimes have -been used.</p> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_57" id="Footnote_57"></a><a href="#FNanchor_57"><span class="label">[57]</span></a> <i>Colaptes auratus.</i></p> - -<p><a name="Footnote_58" id="Footnote_58"></a><a href="#FNanchor_58"><span class="label">[58]</span></a> <i>Colaptes cafer collaris.</i></p></div> - -<div class="fig_right" style="width: 262px;"> -<a id="fig22"></a><img src="images/fig22.png" width="262" height="287" alt="" /> -<div class="fig_caption"><span class="smcap">Fig. 22.</span>—Red-headed woodpecker. Length, about 9½ inches.</div> -</div> - -<p>The red-headed woodpecker<a name="FNanchor_59" id="FNanchor_59"></a><a href="#Footnote_59" class="fnanchor">[59]</a> (<a href="#fig22">fig. 22</a>), is well known east of the Rocky -Mountains, but is rather rare in New -England. Unlike some of the other -species, it prefers fence posts and -telegraph poles to trees as a foraging -ground. Its food therefore naturally -differs from that of the preceding -species, and consists largely of -adult beetles and wasps which it -frequently captures on the wing after -the fashion of flycatchers. Grasshoppers -also form an important part -of the food. Among the beetles are a -number of predacious ground species -and some tiger beetles, which are -useful insects. The red-head has been accused of robbing nests of other birds, and -of pecking out the brains of young birds and poultry; but as the stomachs showed -little evidence to substantiate this charge, the habit probably is exceptional.</p> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_59" id="Footnote_59"></a><a href="#FNanchor_59"><span class="label">[59]</span></a> <i>Melanerpes erythrocephalus.</i></p></div> - -<p>The vegetable food of woodpeckers is varied, but consists largely of small -fruits and berries. The downy and hairy woodpeckers eat such fruits as dogwood -and Virginia creeper and seeds of poison ivy, sumac, and a few other -shrubs. The flicker also eats a great many small fruits and the seeds of a considerable -number of shrubs and weeds. None of the three species is much -<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_27" id="Page_27">« 27 »</a></span> -given to eating cultivated fruits or crops. The red-head has been accused of -eating the larger kinds of fruit, as apples, and also of taking considerable corn. -Stomach examinations show that to some extent these charges are substantiated, -but that the habit is not prevalent enough to cause much damage. The -bird is fond of mast, especially beechnuts, and when these nuts are plentiful -it remains north all winter.</p> - -<p>Woodpeckers apparently are the only agents which can successfully cope -with certain insect enemies of the forest, and, to some extent, with those of -fruit trees also. For this reason, if for no other, they should be protected in -every possible way.</p> - - - -<hr class="chap" /> -<h2><a name="THE_CUCKOOS" id="THE_CUCKOOS">THE CUCKOOS.</a></h2> - - -<p>Two species of cuckoos are common in the United States east of the Great -Plains, the yellow-billed cuckoo<a name="FNanchor_60" id="FNanchor_60"></a><a href="#Footnote_60" class="fnanchor">[60]</a> (<a href="#fig23">fig. 23</a>) and the black-billed cuckoo,<a name="FNanchor_61" id="FNanchor_61"></a><a href="#Footnote_61" class="fnanchor">[61]</a> and in -the West a relative of the yellow-bill, the California cuckoo,<a name="FNanchor_62" id="FNanchor_62"></a><a href="#Footnote_62" class="fnanchor">[62]</a> ranges from -Colorado and Texas to the Pacific coast. While the two species are quite distinct, -the food habits of the yellow-bill and the black-bill do not greatly differ -and their economic status is practically the same.</p> - - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a name="Footnote_60" id="Footnote_60"></a><a href="#FNanchor_60"><span class="label">[60]</span></a> <i>Coccyzus americanus.</i></p> - -<p><a name="Footnote_61" id="Footnote_61"></a><a href="#FNanchor_61"><span class="label">[61]</span></a> <i>Coccyzus erythropthalmus.</i></p> - -<p><a name="Footnote_62" id="Footnote_62"></a><a href="#FNanchor_62"><span class="label">[62]</span></a> <i>Coccyzus americanus occidentalis.</i></p></div> - -<div class="fig_right" style="width: 296px;"> -<a id="fig23"></a><img src="images/fig23.png" width="296" height="204" alt="" /> -<div class="fig_caption"><span class="smcap">Fig. 23.</span>—Yellow-billed cuckoo. Length, about -12 inches.</div> -</div> - -<p>Examination of 155 stomachs has shown that these species are much given -to eating caterpillars, and, unlike -most birds, do not reject those -covered with hair. In fact, -cuckoos eat so many hairy caterpillars -that the hairs pierce the -inner lining of the stomach and -remain there, so that when the -stomach is opened it appears to -be lined with a thin coating of fur.</p> - -<p>An examination of the stomachs -of 46 black-billed cuckoos, -taken during the summer months, -showed the remains of 906 caterpillars, -44 beetles, 96 grasshoppers, -100 sawflies, 30 stinkbugs, -and 15 spiders. In all probability -more individuals than -these were represented, but their -remains were too badly broken -for recognition. Most of the caterpillars were hairy, and many of them belong -to a genus that lives in colonies and feeds on the leaves of trees, including the -apple tree. One stomach was filled with larvæ of a caterpillar belonging to the -same genus as the tent caterpillar, and possibly to that species. Other larvæ -were those of large moths, for which the bird seems to have a special fondness. -The beetles were for the most part click beetles and weevils, including a few -May beetles. The sawflies were contained in two stomachs, one of which held -no less than 60 in the larval stage.</p> - -<p>Of the yellow-billed cuckoo, 109 stomachs (collected from May to October) -were examined. They contained 1,865 caterpillars, 93 beetles, 242 grasshoppers, -37 sawflies, 69 bugs, 6 flies, and 86 spiders. As in the case of the black-billed -cuckoo, most of the caterpillars belonged to hairy species and many of them -were of large size. One stomach contained 250 American tent caterpillars; -another 217 fall webworms. The beetles were distributed among several families, -all more or less harmful to agriculture. In the same stomach which contained -the tent caterpillars were 2 Colorado potato beetles; in another were -3 goldsmith beetles, and remains of several other large beetles. Besides the -ordinary grasshoppers were several katydids and tree crickets. The sawflies -were in the larval stage, in which they resemble caterpillars so closely that -they are commonly called false caterpillars by entomologists. The bugs consisted -of stinkbugs and cicadas, or dog-day harvest flies, with the single exception -of one wheel bug, which was the only useful insect eaten.</p> - - -<p class="center">WASHINGTON : GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE : 1915</p> - - - -<hr class="chap" /> - - -<div class="trans_notes"> -<p class="caption2">Transcriber Note</p> - - -<p>Illustrations moved to prevent splitting paragraphs.</p> -</div> - - - - - - - - - - - - -<pre> - - - - - -End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of USDA Farmers' Bulletin No. 630 (1915 -edition), by F. E. 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