The Idaho Republican. [volume] (Blackfoot, Idaho) 1904-1932, 1917-04-09
EAT INSECT PESTS.
BIRDS ARE REAL FRIENDS OF
THE AGRIcULTURysT,
Investigations Have Proved Beyond All
Doubt That Feathered Creatures
Take High Place in Ranks Of
Farmers Helpers.


There seems never to have been a
time when Americans as a people were
giving so much thought to birds as
now. The sentimental virtues of birds
and their economic uses are being writ
ten of frequently and extensively by
professional and amateur biologists
and ornithologists, and even a vast
number of bird observers of perhaps
limited professional or technical at
tainments in this department of SCI
ence are writing and talking at length
In behalf of the birds.
The discussion of the economic val
ues OF birds is one of the questions of
serious Importance to the whole coun-
try. 1t has been pointed out by students
OF this subject that tree swallows
stomach recently examined contained
40 chinchbugs and fragments Of many
others, besides ten other species of in
sects. The stomach of bank swallow
showed that It contained So cotton boil
Weevils, one of the very dangerous and
destructive insect pests of the United
States. Thirty-f1ve cliff swallows had
eaten an average of Is boil weevils
each. Two stomachs of pine siskins
from California contained 10 black
olive scales and 300 plant lice. The
stomach Of a kildeer taken in Texas
contained more than, 300 larvae. A
flicker's stomach held % big grubs. A
night hawks stomach contained "a
May beetles, the adult form of the
white grub. A New York night hawk
had eaten "a clover-leaf weevils and
357 ants, and another night hawk, $40
So bugs, three beetles,
two wasps and spider. A big-tailed
grackle taken in Texas had eaten in
one meal about 100 cotton boil weevils,
besides other insects. A ring-neck
pheasant, bird which the state of
New York is taking great interest in
showed upon examination
II the crop that it contained 5000
seeds Of chickenweed and a dandelion
lead. More than 1900 seeds have been
ound in a single ducks stomach taken
n Louisiana.
The investigations by the United
states biological survey and the bio
ogical and agricultural bureaus Of the
arious states leave no room for doubt
hat birds play an important relation
0 agricultural interests, though there
ften seems tendency to dwell on the
arm that even much-despised Eng
Sh sparrow has Its part to perform
protecting the agricultural interests
the United States, and the bureau
the biological survey has given
reat deal of attention to this much
bused bird. It has. collected them ,
rom all parts Of the United States ,
nd made an examination of 4OOO
tomachs, the results showing that ,
uring the colder half of the year the ..
'od OF these birds consists almost en- .
rely Of seeds Of weeds.
1t has been estimated by entomolo- :
SITS that the annual loss caused In =
lie United States by insects is $780, =
10000 and that were it not for birds =.
le loss would be much greater. Care =
II students have said that without the -
d of our feathered friends successful =
'riculture would be impossible. The :,
mount of weed seed disposed Of by y
rds, in their depleted numbers, Is i'm :,
essive, and everybody knows that "
e problem of weed destruction is -
ry important to agricultural inter- =
ts.-Washington STAR, 1