The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1919-10-09
STUFFED OWLS CROW DEcoYs
One Way to Bring the Willy Old Bird
Within Reach

take warning. However, E. Lee Le-
Compile will take a chance He has
inaugurated. in conjunction with
national agencies, a campaign for
the killing of destructive crows in
Maryland.
To kill the crow it is first neces-
sary to get within gunshot distance.
To accomplish this very difficult feat
Mr.. LeCompte suggests the use Of
decoys.
Stuffed owls placed on the con-
spicuous limb of dead tree serve
the desired purpose. A wounded
crow staked out in the open will
also attract great numbers of crows.
A large piece of meat or the carcass
of dead animal placed in an open
ing serves as excellent bait and one
well-placed shot will often kill sew
eral crows at once.
The E. l. DUPONT de Nemours
Company, Wilmington, Del, are Of
fering desirable trophies to persons
killing crows in the United States.
The contest is open until December
l. The du Pont Company encour-
ages and enlists the aid of an army
of shooters and envites every owner
of gun to enter the contest.
The State Game and Fish Depart
ment urges farmers and sportsmen's
organizations throughout the state
to cooperate and make combined
campaign against the crow hosts.
Deputy game wardens are also in
structed to assist in reducing the
ranks of this enemy of the game.
They have been allowed to increase
to such an alarming extent that
they are a decided menace to agri-
cultural and sporting interests. The
destruction within the next year of
thousands of crows will mean the
increase of hundreds of thousands
of song and game birds.
A national crow shoot has been
inaugurated in the United States this
year and the campaign material is
sued says: ut is estimated that
every year insects cause a loss of
millions of dollars to the farmers.
truck raisers and fruit growers. The
farmers are the producers and what
ever loss they sustain effects every
consumer in the country. Song birds
are the natural enemies of all in
sect life, song birds alone can keep
in check the ravages of insects.
Crows destroy birds, birds destroy
insects, insects destroy crops-there-
fore, kill the crows and save the
crops"
April, May and June are the proper
months of the year to make an Or
ganized attempt to eradicate the
pests. The crows nests are usually
repaired or built anew the latter
part of Marchsand four to seven eggs
are laid early in April. The period of
incubation covers from II to IS days
and the young remain in the nest
about three weeks after Matching.
Sportsmen and farmers should CO.
operate at this time and destroy as
many crows nests and shoot as many
parent birds as possible.
Being scavengers, crows carry the
germs of the dreaded hoof and mouth
disease, hog colera, CHAMBERS
ect., which are lurking in countless
numbers in every decaying bit of
Garrison. Farmers look on the visits
OF the crow to their farm yards with
dread and apprehension. Crows un-
doubtedly destroy large amount of
song and game birds before they are
through nesting, and also destroy
their eggs and young.
Crows do not confne their hunting
to small areas; they scour the coun-
w AOi hiilco aIOuIlu lHelT sndunLS.
They search tirelessly the forests.
the brush and the marsh for the
eggs and the young useful insec
tivorous and game birds.
Crows show an almost uncanny in
telligence in their ability to ferret
out the nests and memorize their To-
cations. The willy black demons will
drop into meadows and fields near
where numerous quail are nesting
and industriously start on a bug
hunt. Let mother quail leave her
nest, however, for warm dust bath
or cool drink of spring water and
the black shadow of that crow will
darken the little nest and the raw
enous maws of the ugly crow babes
will be filled with the contents of
fresh quail eggs, young quail in the
embryo state. and even young quail
themselves.
The substenance of the young in
sectivorous birds is composed almost
wholly of insects, and they require