288 THE NATURE-STUDY REVIEW [2 : 8-nov., 1906 



Herring Gulls Killing Young. A writer in Science (Nov. 9, 1906) 

 has observed numerous attacks committed by the adult gulls upon their young, 

 killing and severely wounding. There was no evidence that the birds 

 attacked were weak or otherwise abnormal. The young were about half 

 grown. Notes on similar observations by others are wanted. 



Deer tOO Numerous. Under the protection of the game laws requiring 

 a long close season deers are becoming numerous in many localities in New 

 England and are doing considerable damage to garden and farm crops. It 

 will be necessary to enact laws for an open season in order to reduce the 

 numbers. \_Sbielct s Magazine.^ 



Crayfish Industry. From the Potomac a half million crayfish are 

 annually shipped to the New York markets. Many other rivers in Florida, 

 Louisiana, and other southern localities supply crayfishes. One county in 

 Florida in 1902 shipped nearly 56,000 pounds (3 pounds to the dozen), 

 value nearly $3,300. In Oregon the annual catch is often more than 

 100,000 pounds, worth over $7,000. In 1899 the wholesale business in 

 Portland amounted to nearly $20,000. Such statistics are incomplete, but 

 they show that large numbers of crayfish are annually sent to market. The 

 demand is increasing. Artificial breeding will be necessarv. Professor 

 Andrews, of Johns Hopkins University, has raised them in his laboratory. 

 They laid eggs (200 to 600) when one year old, and grew to marketable 

 size (3 inches) in two summers from the egg. Probably in nature they are 

 full grown in four or five years. The Oregon crayfish (Astacus) grows 

 much more rapidly and might profitably be introduced into rivers east of the 

 Rockv Mountains. [Notes from article by E. A. Andrews, in Science, June 

 29, 1906.] 



Sweet Clover. The common melilotus or sweet clover (Melilotus alba) 

 of our roadsides is classed as a weed in the laws of many States. Gleanings 

 in Bee Culture points out its value as a honev plant and as a support for 

 unprotected soil of embankments into which the melilot roots grow readily. 

 The plant gives no trouble in cultivated fields. There seems to be no good 

 reason why it should not be placed with the useful plants and the laws should 

 be changed so as to allow the growing of sweet clover on otherwise unpro- 

 tected embankments. 



Red Clover as a Honey Plant. Italian bees gather more honey from 

 red clover in some seasons than in others. This is connected with the fact 

 that the corollas are shorter dry seasons and the bees can work them more 

 rapidly than the larger tubes of wet seasons. Also certain soils produce 

 rank growth of long corolla tubes and hence the value of red clover for bees 

 may vary with localities. \Gleanings in Bee Culture^ 



