The Port Gibson reveille. [volume] (Port Gibson, Miss.) 1890-current, 1904-12-01
KILLING QUAIL.
Destroying the Only Bird that
Eats All Kinds Of Insects.

Eats All Kinds Of Insects.
| The national government and va
rious southern states governments
areexpending great sums Of money
in an effort to stay the steady ap-
proach of the dreaded Mexican boil
weevil, yet nothing is being done to
protect our common quail, the only
bird that is known to feed on all
manner of insects, and at the same
time being harmless. There are
not near so many of these birds in
Claiborne county as there were ten
years ago, and by the time the boil
wecviI (Which Is travelling at the
rate of rs miles per year, reaches
us, the present number will be de-
creased.
The following article along this
line, taken from the Times Demo-
crat of few days ago, should be
read by every farmer in the south !:
| Quail. or bob white, is now in
season. New Orleans sportsmen
have been hunting them since the
Ist of November. Although a fa-
vorite of epicures, this bird is far
more valuable as an insect destroy
er. Frank M. Miller. president of
the Audubon Society of Louisiana,
speaking of the recent investiga-
tions made by the United States
Department of agriculture. refer
ring to the value of this bird in de-
youring insects, gave the following
interesting data
MANY birds have been killed
and the contents of the stOmachsI
carefully examined. 1t was found
that there were a great variety of
insects. Among the specimens
found were: Ground beetles, Col
orado potato beetle. locust leaf
mining beetle, flea beetle, spinach
flea beetle, three lined potato beetle,
leaf beetle, grape vine colaspie,
golden tortoise beetle, striped Gu
cumber beetle. twelve-spotted Gu
cumber beetle, bean leaf beetle,
Mexican cotton boil weeviI, Fuller's
rose beetle, bill bug. corn bill bug,
imbricated snout beetle, clover leaf
weevils, May beetle. leaf chafers.
dung beetles, click beetles, histerid-
beetle. darkling beetle, lady birds,
squash lad. birds. rove beetle, sol
dier beetle. red milkweed beetle,
chinck bug, false chinck bug, stink |
bug. shield backed bug, tarnished |
plant bug. negro bug. assassin bug. |
leaf hoppers. cricket, meadow grass
hopper. kattydid, walking stick,
grouse, locust, two-lined locust
Rocky Mountain locust, cotton
worm, boil worm, striped garden
yellow bear, pyralid,
puslanesphinx, Southern tobacco
worm, angle wing caterpillar, angle
wing pupa. corn-louse ant, pave
ment ant. black ant, gall flies, in
fly, insect egg parasite,
black wasp, crane flies, May flies,
flesh flies, robber flies, ground spi-
ders, harvest spiders, centipedes,
legs. snails, pond snails,
crawfsh.
"The quails eat all the above in
sects and many other kinds which
space will not permit me to enum-
crate. 1t has been found that these
wonderful birds eat II6 different
kinds of insects.
They also eat weed seeds. The
stomach of one bird killed in 1901
was found to contain 10, seeds
Of the pigeon grass. f"
Mr.. Miller will continue to gath
er interesting matter concerning
the quail, and he intends to let the
have the benefit of his
researches. Many scientists say
that the abundance of insects is due
in great measure to the sIaught-
ering of the quails.