1911] The Ottawa Naturalist, 215 



defoliation, but also to the fact that this^u,defoliation 

 by weakening the vitality of the trees will render them 

 more susceptible to the attacks of the worst forest 

 pests, the bark beetles. These latter insects attack healthy 

 and unhealthy trees and, by the boring of the adult beetles and 

 their larvae in the growth layer beneath the bark, the trees are 

 girdled and in consequence killed. A species of bark beetle 

 {Dendroctonus piceaperda) attacking the spruce has caused con- 

 siderable destruction among the spruce forests of eastern Canada 

 and the United States. The activities of these bark beetles are 

 inter-related with those of the timber boring beetles, which attack 

 the standing trees which have been killed or are dying as a 

 result of the infestation of the bark beetles, and thus render 

 them useless for timber. 



Fire, insects and fungal diseases as I have already 

 stated, are all closely inter-related. Abundant evidence 

 has been gathered to show that trees killed by insects 

 have more readily acted as fuel for forest fires, and 

 also that insects may bring about the final destruction 

 of trees which might otherwise have recovered from the effects 

 of fire. By their borings and tunnellings in the bark and wood, 

 these beetles provide means of entrance for the spores of fungi 

 which by their rapid growth hasten the destruction and decay of 

 the timber. It will be realized, then, that any system of forest 

 conservation and afforestation will fail in its object if it leaves 

 out of consideration the immense losses entailed by the attacks 

 of insects and fungi, the aggregate losses due to which I have no 

 hesitation in affirming, as others who have investigated these 

 matters maintain, exceeds even the total loss due to fires. In 

 most cases these losses can be prevented and the methods to be 

 adopted for the prevention of losses due to insects and plant 

 diseases are almost identical with those to be employed against 

 the prevention of forest fires: constant supervision and prompt 

 action immediately the outbreak is observed, which will be in an 

 early and controllable stage, if the supervision is sufficiently 

 adequate to be effective. 



The Protection of Birds. 

 The majority of people fail to appreciate the part w^hich 

 birds play in the econom}^ of Nature and the untold benefits 

 resulting from their protection and encouragement. In com- 

 batting those factors which are responsible for so great a loss to 

 the agriculture of this country injiirious insects, weeds and 

 small mammals, such as mice and gophers and to the forests, 

 we shall be compelled to an increasing extent to rely on the natural 

 enemies of these pests, especially the birds which are the most 



