Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1921-12-01


make an average of almost three to
the pellet, and probably to the meal. In 592 pei
lets collected in California there were found skulls
and other traces of 261 pocket gophers IA field
mice, 1874 pocket mice, IA deer mice, so harvest
mice, 230 kangaroo rats and 215 house mice. These
items make it clear that the barn owl Is constantly
doing work of great value to agriculture Its serv-
ices typical of those of hawks and owls In gen.
eral. Owls a group have long been prosecuted
by man, but never has persecution been more un"
just. The hawks and owls are not the only suffer-
ers, however, for when their numbers are greatly
reduced in any community, farmers will be forclbly
reminded of the fact by great increase In the
number Of destructive rodents.
Among the most praiseworthy birds are the
cuckOOs. The most widely distributed species, the
yellow-bed and back-billed cuckoos, usually keep
out of sight, but well known by their strange
notes, which have earned them the name rain
crow" The cuckoos feed very largely on caterpll-
lars, and subsist to a larger extent than most Of
our birds on the hairy and splny kinds. One stom-
ach contained $50 tent caterpillars and another
217 fall web-worms. The cuckoos fond also
Of grasshOppers, sawtly larvae plant bugs, and
other injurious insects.
The large and important woodpecker family In
cludes "a species In the United States, most Of
them highly beneficial. They the chief de-
tenders Of trees against insect attack, most Of
them being specialized to feed upon wood-boring
larvae, pests preyed upon by few other birds From
10 to 80 per cent Of the annual diet Of various
species Is made up of ants, which almost uni
formly injurious. The fickers, or "yellowham-
mers" especially are assiduous destroyers Of ants
Of these birds being known to have taken more
than 5000 at single meal
A group of BIRDS which, though diverse In ap-
pearance, related in essential characters, In
cludes the chuck-will s-wldows, whD-poor- Wills
poor-wills, nighthawks, swifts and hummng birds
All almost strictly insect eaters and conse-
quenty beneficial. The larger ones feed extensive
ly upon eaf-chafers, the larvae Of which, including
the well-known white grubs, are very destructive
The nighthawks take considerable of the same sort
Of food, but in common with the swifts, capture
a great variety of small insects, more than 80 diff
ferent kinds having been found In single stomachs
represented in some by thousands of individ-
uals.
One of our families of birds gets its popular
name "fycatcher" from the insect-eating nature
of its species, 81 of which live In the United States
including such birds the spectacular scssortan,
the bold, dashing kingblrd and the more quiet and
domestic phoebe. On the average, 90 per cent or
the food Of these birds has been found to consist
Of insects The rose-chafer, species not only de-
structive to vegetation, but known to be poisonous
to chickens and pheasants, Is freely eaten by the
kingbird Several fycatchers have the reputation
of eating hive bees to an injurious extent, but 1t
has been shown that they take mostly drones anu
furthermore, that they eat enough enemies of bees
robberies, to pay for all the domestic bees they
take
The jays, crows and ravens have always been
severely criticized and it must be admitted that
on the whole the criticism Is justified. About the
best that be said for birds Of this family Is
that on the average they do about as much good
harm. 1t would seem a good policy to accord
them the same treatment long given the common
crow-the crow Is not especially prosecuted,
neither Is It protected Thus while the birds are
allowed to exist in reasonable numbers for the sake
of the good they do the way is left open for ag-
gresslve measures against them when necessary.
In the case Of this family, as OF all destructive
birds damage is the result Of overabpn dance.
The damage done by the backblrds Is conspc-
,uously the result of ver-population. The damage
something's is serious, and protection of these spe-
Giles Is not recommended Irtke' sainssfahify with
the blackblrds however, such birds as orioles
and meadowlarks and these do much more good
than harm
The great sparrow family, comprising almost