Delaware gazette and state journal. (Wilmington, Del.) 1883-1902, 1891-01-01
TILE ENGLISH SPaRRoH.
Tho Cheveehe, Species of Owl, the
ural Enemy of the Sparrow, DescrIl

Tho Cheveehc, a Species of Owl, the Nat
ural Enemy of the sparrow, Described.
A correspondent of Garden and Forest
contributes the following timely and
interesting information: 81 have read
lately in the Journal of the French So
ciete d'Acclimatation an account of the
damage done in America by the English
sparrow. 1t was most unfortunate
idea introducing into America these
birds, always more destructive than use
full, without introducing, too, their ma
tural enemy, created, apparently, ex-
pressly to check their excessive multi
plication. This enemy of the European
sparrow, which it certainly would not
be difficult to naturalize in the United
States, is the pigmy owl known in
France under the name of Cheveche,
the Stryx passernia of Linneus. He is a
ferocious and well armed bird, able from
his small size to enter in to small holes
in walls or rotten trees, or wherever
the sparrows make their nests. AL
though the Cheveche attacks rats and
mice like the other species of Stryx, his
speciality as a carnivorous bird is to
destroy sparrows. He is not larger
than blackbird, although shorter and
stouter. The short, strongly-armed
claws Of this bird permit him to climb
up the face of wall and to ascend and
descend the cavities Of old trees, into
which he plunges without hesitation.
The little bird inhabits, too, churches
and all sorts of old buildings, and, in a
word, all the out-of-the-wa places
which the other birds Of the same genus
seek, He is only partly nocturnal, be-
ginning to hunt his prey at dusk. The
Cheyeehe not only exterminates the
sparrows' nests, but IL drives them away
entirely by its presence alone from any
locality. Sparrows so fear this bird
that whole tlocks of them depart as
soon as they notice that it is established
in any particular region. This little
owl to the sparrow is like the presence
OF wolf in a sheep-fold.
1T seems to me, therefore, that it
would be an interesting experiment to
try to naturalize this bird in America
In order to make theattempt successful,
and this is true in all efforts to natural
ize birds, there are certain conditions
which must be fulfilled; the most i'm
portant is to procure for the strangers
houses and retreats where they can find
shelter and can rear their young in
safety. Numerous laws have been
adopted in France for the protection of
insectivorous birds, although none Of
them have yet produced any very salts
factory results. And this must always
be the case as long as people cannot be
made to understand that birds need
places Of refuge in which to build their
nests and breed without fear Of being
disturbed by man or by dogs, cats and
other destructive animals.
The stupid destruction Of nocturnal
carnivorous animals, like owls, bats,
&C., is one Of the great agricultural
errors of our time, and il is safe to say
that the enormous losses in crops due
70 rats, mice and various insects are
largely in consequence of this error.
Rabbits in Australia ore running crops
and still they might be got rid Of hy III.
\ troducing the great owl fStryx huhel
1 the special enemy Of rabbits, and other
LARGE carnivor0us animals like eagles
which are not rare in the south Of
/ France. 1T is certainly astonishing in
this era Of progress that the world doe.
not know better how to make use d
such assistance nature offers us free 81
charge