The Ocala evening star. [volume] (Ocala, Fla.) 1895-1943, 1910-03-12

it eats cultivated fruit. as the bird is
not resident there except in winter,
The analysis OF the ~ per cent is not
only OF interest but highly instruc-
tive. Beetles OF various kinds form
10 per cent, grasshOppers and crick
cts form 9 per cent In August they
comprise over 80 per cent OF the food.
Both Of these classes of insects are
serious pests. and any bird that de-
stroys them is too valuab to kill
The other Il per cent Of the insect
food consists Of moths and butterflies.
bees. wasps and ants. Many larvae
Of the Owlet- moths are eaten,a family
OF which includes caterpillars, so well
known and dreaded by the name OF
cut worms. One robin nad no less
than 40 army worms in its stomach
and contained 125 march flies.
&. r. Hodge. Of Clark University,
Worcester. Mass. speaking OF the
Bob White quail of the North and
Northwest. partridge Of the South,
says the Bob w ite is the most valu
able and important bird in existence
for the American home. garden and
farm. 1t does practically no harm
whatever and seems to specialize on
the most pestiferous insects and weed
seeds. and it's large size compared
with other insectiverous birds. rem
ders it capab BILE of doing an amount Of
good service which few people realize.
From different crops representing a
single meal (and the bird fills its crop
from six TO ten times a day have
been taken 300 seeds Of sOrrel. 100
OF rag-weed. 5000 Of pigeon grass,
10000 Of pg-weed. tablespoonful of
chinch bugs and over 100 potato bee
Esee1inp with not
white have revealed the possibilities
Of the birds work in a garden or field
in one day-59 adult potato beetles,
another 1886 rose slugs, another 5000
plant lice and 5G8 mosquitoes in two
hours. In addition to the above the
bird is known to feed upon the cotton
worm, the boll-worm. the Mexican
cotton boil weevil. cut worms. cabba ge
worms cucumber beetles. squash bugs
grasshoppers and crickets, army
worms. and the Hessan fly If the
estimated 5000 600. 900 annual damage
to farm crops in the United States
| from insect raTages is correct. and it
| is much too low. if anything. the bob
whites alone might save us over half
| the amount if the people would give it
! a chance altho' tons of millions would
| be saved in weed seed destruction.
| Kirk Munroe. honorary vice presi-
! dent Florida Audubon Society. makes
! this highly interesting statement.
! Florida is pre- eminently an agricul
| tural state and fruit raising is one
! of its chief Industries. The hardest
| fight of the fruit growers is against
| the hordes of insects. aphides, ants
bugs, beetles, caterpillars. grasshop-
pers. flies and grubs that direct their
| entire energies not only to the de-
, struction Of his crop, but of his trees
| which they attack in leaf. bark and
root He fights them with sprays
| washes and fumigations, and perhaps
| succeeds in destroying one beetle out
of thousand, one aphis in a million
and one ant out Of billion. His eff
forts are expensive. more or less in
furious, and ridiculous in their ineffi
cheney. In spite of them he would be
quickly driven out of business were i
not for an army of trained allies
alert. sharp eyed, tireless and eager tt
devote their time to his service with.
out pay | mean of course the bird:
| without which our fair state would
quickly become uninhabitabe. not
ed French scientist has declared tina
without birds TO check the ravages Q
insects human life would vanish from
the planet within the short space o
nine years. and | venture the predic
ton that in half that time no one o
us could live in Florida, were Ou
birds to leave suddenly for place
where their services are better appre
ciated. In our inconceivable folly. W.
of Florida never hesitate to kill birt
if seized with an inclina ton to do sc
4 little gray coated chap fitting from
tree to tree in search of insects tina
are Sapping their life. offers a tempt
ing mark. and we blaze away at hin
with 22-calibre rife. just to see i
we can hit him. Besides the insect
! iverous birds upon whose efforts w
are absolutely dependent for success
! in every branch of agriculture. the,
, are of inestimable value as tourist at
fractions. Was there ever a North
ern man in Florida who did not lste1
, for his first hooking birds song O
| watch with delight the fishing OF
pelican? Is he not willing to spen
money for the sight of a flamingO.
roseate spoon bill, or wood Ibis, an
L. does he not exclaim with delight a
a flashing glimpse of a paroQuet o
a nonpareil? He is SO willing to pa
literally for such sights as these. an
5 we have given him just cause t
complain Of the absence of bird lif
: along our coasts and inland water