BIRDS. 187 



l>ird.s were fur the most troublesome. As he felt o])lio-ed 

 in self defence to kill large numbers of them, he ex- 

 amined their stomachs and in no case found fruit but 

 always worms alone. Yet this was all through the sea- 

 son and the grounds were surrounded with Scrul) Oaks 

 and Huckle-berry bushes, which were a part of the time 

 loaded with fruit and this fruit was of course much easier 

 to ol)tain than the worms. To ascertain how rapidly the 

 birds woidd destroy the worms this gentleman placed 

 tw(j thousand of them on an oak in the very height of the 

 the ])erry season and in a very few days they were all 

 eaten l)y Eol)ins and Cat Birds. 



Any one that will watch the Rolnn closely can not fail 

 of being struck by the diligence and activity it displays in 

 the capture of worms. It seems to be an established fact 

 that Robins must have animal food, especially when young. 

 In reducing the number of the cut-worms and others like 

 them the robin is especially ethcient. These worms 

 crawl out of the groimd during the night and go 1)ack 

 early in the morning l)efore many birds are stirring ])ut 

 the Robin is a very early riser and devotes his mornings 

 to the special work of exterminating these worms, which 

 if allowed to increase, lay Avaste great tracts of country, 

 destroying cal)bages, turnips, potatoes and many of our 

 most useful vegetaldes. A Mr. Flagg whom ]Mr. Sam- 

 uels c[uotes as one who has watched the habits of this 

 bird for a long time and very carefully, states as his be- 

 lief that the Robin is almost exclusively an insectivorous 

 bird and uses fruit only, as he expresses it, for desert, 

 never as a i>:eneral diet. 



This gentleman tried various kinds of food for yoimg 

 Robins that he had taken. To some, worms and soaked 

 bread were given, l)ut all died ; to others worms, bread 

 and cherries, but most of these also died. Then he tried 

 a variety of insect food and the manner in which the birds 

 picked up the insects from the bottom of the cage, l)reak- 

 ing any hard parts and their general treatment of the 



