The Fargo forum and daily republican. [volume] (Fargo, N.D.) 1894-1957, 1913-08-08
stomach examinations made BY assist.

II 5bOAA1S1GAA4
ants of the biological survey:
A tree swallows stomach was fount
to contain forty entire chinch bugs
and fragments of many others, besides
ten other species of insects. A banl
swallow in Texas devoured sixty-efsnt
~cotton-boll weevils, one Of the worst
insect pests that ever invaded tn
United States; and thirty-fve cliff
swallows had taken an average o.
eighteen boil weeyils each. Two stom.
achs Of pine siskins from Haywardsi
Cal, contained 1900 black olive scales
and 300 plant lice. As kilIdeer's stom-
ach taken in November In Texas con-
tanned over 300 mosquito larvae. a
hlcker's stomach held tWenty-eight
white grubs. A ~nighthaWk's stomach
collected in Kentucky contained thir-
white grubs. Another nighthawk from
New York had eaten tWenty-fout
clover-leaf weevils and 375 ants. Still
another nighthawk had eaten SAC
grasshoppers, fifty-two bugs, three
beetles, two wasps, and a spider. A
boat-tafied grackle from Texas had
eaten at one meal about 100 cotton
bollworms, besides a few other insects.
a ring-necked p~heasant's crop from
Washington contained 5000 seeds OF
chickweed and a dandelion head. More
than 70 1000 seeds have been found in a
single duck stomach taken in Louisi-
ana in February.
A knowledge of his bird friends and
enemies, therefore, Is doubly import
ant, to the farmer and orchardist in orr
der that he may protest the kinds that
earn protection by their services ana
may drive away or destroy the others.
AT the present time many kinds of
useful birds need direct intervention
in their behalf as never before. The
Entertainments of civilization on tim
bered tracts and the methods Of mod
ern Intensive cultivation by destroying
or restricting breeding grounds Of
birds tend to diminish their ranks. The
number of insect pests, on the other
hand, Is all the time Increasing by
leaps and bounds through importations
from abroad and by migration from
adjoining territories. Every effort,
therefore, should be made to augment
the numbers Of our useful birds by
protecting them from their enemies,
by providing nesting facilities, and by
furnishing them food in times of
stress, especially in winter.
Important in this connection Is the
planting near the house and. even in
out-of-the-way places on the farm of.
various berry-bearing shrubs, many of
which are ornamental, which will sup
ply food when snow is on the ground.
species which are not berry eat
ers, like the ~woodpeckers, nuthatches.
creepers, and chicadees, can be made
winter residents Of many farms, even
the north, by putting out at con-
venient places a supply of suet, OF
they and many other birds are
very fond, even in summer. Hedges
and thickets about the farm are i'm.
p~ortant to furnish nesting sites and
both from the elements and
from the numerous enemies Of birds.
Few are aware of the difficulty often
experienced by birds in obtaining wat
er for drinking and bathing. and a con-
supply Of water near the farm
house win materially aid in attracting
birds to the neighborhood and in keep
ing them there, at least till the time of
Shallow trays of wood or
admirably serve the purpose, es-
pecially as birds delight to battle in
them.
Considerable success has been met
with in Germany and elsewhere in
Europe by supplying artificial nest
boxes for birds, and the same meth
of increasing the number of birds
and attracting them to farms and or
chards where their services are most
should be extensively employed
in this country. The experiment can
the more easily be tried since several
III - la IAG oIlISu oLdLGS are now
prepared to make and deliver boxes
specially designed for martins, swal-
lows, ~bluebirds, wrens, woodpeckers,
and other species. The average farm
er's boy, however, If provided with a
few tools, is quite equal to the task OF
making acceptable boxes for the COM
moner species. which are far from fas-
tidious as to the appearance of the box
intended for their occupancy.
u. One OF the worst foes of orr NATIVE
birds Is the house cat. and probably
of our native wild animals de-
as many birds on the farm, par
ticularly f1edglings, as cats. The house
hold pet is by no mean blameless in
this respect, for the bird Hunting in
is strong even in the well-fed
but much of the loss OF our
feathered life is attributable to the
alf-starved stray, which in summer
Is as much at home in the groves and
fields as the birds themselves. Forced
forage for their own livelihood,
these animals, which are almost as
wild as the ancestral wildcat, inflict an
appalling loss on u feathered allies
and even on the smaller game birds
cats are to find place in the farmers
household, every effort should be made
by carefully feeding and watching
them to insure the safety of the birds.
The cat without a home should be
Inercifully put out Of the way.
In the present bulletin fifty of our
birds are discussed, includ-
ing some that are destructive. They
various parts Of the ountry
and it is for the interest of the farm
ers of the respective localities to be
with them. A colored illus
tration of each species is given SO as
to enable the reader to identify the
bird at a glance and to permit, the de-
scriptive text, at best an unsatisfac-
tory method of Identification, to be cut
down or altogether dispensed with.
The birds were drawn from nature by
well-known bird artist, Louis Ag-
assiz Fuertes. The accounts of the
birds habits are necessarily brief. but
they are believed to be sufficient to ac-
quaint the reader with the most prom
characteristics of the several
species, at least from the standpoint of
their relation to man.
THE WABASH.
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