122 The Ottawa Naturalist. [Dec 



but do not eat the larger ones when smaller are available, in- 

 stead merely squeej^ing their heads as if desirous that they 

 should be killed at all events. 



These are the ploughman's more constant company, lait 

 occasionally he will have a graceful flock of gulls as his guests — 

 voracious feeders upon every insect exposed, and a large flock 

 will soon devour all specimens in sight. 



In my personal experience, however, I have found crows 

 to be by far the most persistent in their search for insects. They 

 will literally live and feed their yoiing upon cutworms from 

 a badly infested locality, locating the grubs by means of the 

 upheavals so characteristically left when one is working near the 

 surface. Another favourite diet is made up of army -worms 

 when present. During a local outbreak near my home, in 1913, 

 I found that of all Vjirds, crows were most in evidence at this 

 time (August). As is well known, crows in autumn generally 

 collect into large flocks, often of many thousands. One such 

 flock, estimated at 3,000, visited the army-worms daily, 

 particularly when they were crossing a road. Several infested 

 fields were also located by the crows' guidance, the birds having 

 forsaken all other food and flown several miles to partake of 

 these caterpillars. The birds remained on the fields for some 

 weeks after the larvae had pupated, undoubtedly picking up 

 these latter from beneath clods of earth, etc., which they are 

 experts at turning over and habitually do so in search of in- 

 sects. How many army-worms a flock of 3,000 crows would 

 devour in two weeks, I will leave my readers to judge. 



In describing some of the good qualities of crows, I do not 

 wish it to be thought that I thus acquit them of all crimes. The 

 crow is often a thief, helping himself to a farmer's corn, as 

 readily as he will to eggs or young poultry when opportunity 

 offers. To those of us who have watched his habits carefully, 

 however, the good deeds seem to far outweigh the bad. And, 

 therefore, I include him as an undoubted friend. 



Another type of birds, frequently overlooked as destroyers 

 of insects, but preserved at certain seasons on account of their 

 food value and the sport they supply to hunters, are the various 

 species of grouse. 



To those who have lived in their breeding areas, it is notice- 

 able that the yearly increase of Prairie Sharp-tailed Grouse 

 {P ape dice cetes p. campestris) in the prairie provinces fluctuates 

 from year to year, the variation in numbers, apart from the 

 devastation caused by gunners, being largely due to the food 

 supply, the food in question consisting chiefly of grasshoppers. 



Observation shows that an outbreak of locusts is nearly 

 always followed by the successful maturing of a large number 



