Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1868-1875, 1872-06-15
MHATna RIRDs EAT?


& Apaper under this title by John W. Rob-
son, formerly Of Illinois, and now of Kan
sss, was read before the Northern Illinois
Horticultural Society, at its late session at
Princeton. The essay was replete with
facts gathered under the personal observa-
ton of the essayist, AID from notes taken
at the time we reproduce the following:
The Fed-tailed buzzard feeds upon squirrels,
rabbits, rats and mice, and therefore, it is
the farmers friend. The sparrOw-hawk
occasionally takes barnyard fowl but
feeds principally on mice and moles. The
king-bird eats gsdflies, BOTTLES, and vario
other insects-and sometimes fruit; but are
not destructive to fruit to any great degree.
The great crested fy-catcher and pewee
are fast friends of the orchardist, and live
on insects, solely. The bobolink eats the
seeds of weeds, insects, and at the South,
rice. SpOrtsmen eagerly kill it for the deli
cacy Of its flesh.
The red-winged black bird in the spring
lives principally on cut-worms, wire worms,
caterpillars, and the Larvae Of noxiOus in
sects; latter they attack corn, and also eat
the seeds Of various plants. The purple
grackle follows the plOWman in the spring,
and destroys the Larvae of many nOxiOus in
sects. The Baltimore OriOle feeds on beet
les, curculio, pea curculio, aud the long
shouted nut weevil. And we may add in
parenthesis, it is thoroughly detested by the
fruit grower in Southern Illinois. The
orchard OriOle, a wren, is too little known,
and appreciated by orchardists. 1t deVOuTs
hosts of worms and noxious insects, and is
the most industrious bird the writer knows.
The meadow lark lives principally on sub
terranesn larvae. The blue jay, this pert
and snowy bird, the writer considers, mean,
deceitful, tyrannical, aud sly; yet he is one
of the few birds which eat the orchard cat
erPillars.
The butcher bird is one of the most in
dustrious of the feathered tribe, and feeds
on caterpillars, spiders, grasshoppers, etc.
The cedar bird eats the canker worm.
The white breasted nuthatch aud American
Creeper, live on tree insects solely. Robins
eat grubs, the Larvae of the May beetle, and
cut worms, and are especially destructive to
strawberries. The brown thrush aud cat
bird destroy the same class of insects, and
also eat ripe berries. Blue birds live eX-
elusively on insects and their Larvae, and are
especially destructive to the canker worm
and codling moth. The finch family in
clude about twenty varieties and subdi-
visions. They spread over large tracts OF
country, IN search of grubs, Larvae of insects
and seeds. The American red start is gay
little fellow, fitting about from place to
place, after swarms of flies. The warblers
are a great service to the farmer and horti-
culturist, for they destroy great multitudes
of noxious insects.
House Wrens.-The patient, perseyering,
and yet brave little fellows, feed exclusive
IL on caterpillars and insects. The black
capped titmOuse eats the Larvae and CO
cOOns Of the codling moth.
WOodpeckers are the true laborers for
man, their chief food being tree Larvae,
The American or rain crow is a quiet bird,
having timid and retiring disposition. He
CUTS the tent of every orchard caterpillar he
meets. The American partridge or quail
is one of the unremirting destroyers Of the
chinch bug and the striped pumpkin bug;
and is one of the most valuable Of birds tC
the farmer and horticulturist. The essay.
| list believed that farmers aud hOTticulturist:
/ had not Disseminated enough between
friends and foes, and he noticed a number
| of cases where the indiscriminate slaughtel
of birds had worked evil to the pr Oducts o
| the farm and garden.