BIRDS EATING MOSQUITOES 177 



and of mosquitoes and found that they captured them very promptly. In 

 Europe the larva of Salamandra maculosa is known to destroy mosquito larvae. 



Tadpoles, or pollywogs, are so frequently found in stagnant ponds that the 

 question has often arisen as to whether they destroy mosquito larvae. In our 

 experience tadpoles and mosquito larvae do not occur together; we have found 

 mosquito larvae invariably absent from water inhabited by tadpoles. This may, 

 however, be purely a coincidence and not due to any effect from the tadpoles 

 themselves. As the tadpoles are wholly vegetable feeders their influence, if any, 

 upon the mosquitoes must be a purely mechanical one ; their violent movements 

 might cause a contant disturbance which would interfere with the mosquito 

 larvae. It must also be remembered that, at least in temperate regions, the tad- 

 poles appear when the great wave of mosquito larvae has already passed and when, 

 in fact, very few mosquito larvae are to be found. Doctor Smith records some 

 experiments made by Mr. W. P. Seal, of Delair, N. J., with the tadpoles of the 

 bullfrog (Rana pipiens) which resulted negatively. Even when the tadpoles 

 had been deprived of all food for several weeks they would not eat mosquito 

 larvse. 



REPTILES. 



In the tropics insectivorous lizards undoubtedly destroy mosquitoes along 

 with other insects. Giles states that the bright little gecko lizard, commonly 

 found in bungalows in India, is a valuable destroyer of mosquitoes in houses. 

 He considers an individual gecko " at least equal in mosquito destroying effi- 

 ciency to a fly paper of the largest size, and their company should be encouraged 

 accordingly." There must be other species having similar habits, but as far as 

 we are aware specific mention has not been made of their mosquito diet. 



BIRDS. 



As a matter of course, many insectivorous birds which feed while on the wing 

 destroy mosquitoes in great numbers. This is especially true of the goatsuckers 

 (Caprimulgidge), to which belong our night-hawks and whip-poor-wills, as they 

 are mostly active at twilight when mosquitoes are most in evidence. An observa- 

 tion is on record by the late Professor P. L. Harvey, in which he states that he 

 found over 600 insects, largely gnats and flies, in the crop of a single night-hawk 

 (Chordeiles virginianus) . 



Mr. Allan H. Jennings, formerly entomologist of the Isthmian Canal Com- 

 mission, has published an interesting note in the Proceedings of the Entomo- 

 logical Society of Washington, vol. 10, pp. 61-62, on the mosquito-eating habit of 

 the Cuban night-hawk (Chordeiles virginianus minor). He states that while 

 collecting birds on the island of New Providence, Bahamas, in May, 1887, he 

 had an opportunity of observing the effectiveness of this bird as a mosquito 

 destroyer. 



" One afternoon about 4 o'clock a heavy thunderstorm came up from the 

 west accompanied by much rain. When the storm passed by, about an hour 

 before sunset, it was followed by large numbers of birds of many species, but 

 mainly the smaller insectivorous birds, warblers, etc. They were moving in the 

 direction the storm had taken and were evidently feeding as they went, though 

 passing quite rapidly. Accompanying them was a number of Cuban night- 



