No. 20.] THE BIRDS OF CONNECTICUT. 325 



to feed in small covered pens made of coarsely meshed wire 

 netting and having the sides raised about an inch and a half 

 above the ground. There is practically no danger that cats or 

 other animals will die from eating sparrows that have been 

 poisoned. Any wheat coated by the above process, which is over- 

 looked by the birds, will become harmless after a few rains. 

 Sparrows can be reduced locally to almost any desired extent by 

 the methods outlined above, but it should not be forgotten that 

 such reduction can be made permanent only by systematic and 

 continued efforts." (N. Dearborn, " How to Destroy the Eng- 

 lish Sparrow.") 



With this species our review of harmful and negative spar- 

 rows ceases, for almost all the remaining species are exceedingly 

 useful. 



The American Goldfinch {Astragalinus tristis tristis) " or 

 wild canary, is as useful as it is beautiful, and as a weed destroyer 

 has few equals. It confines its attention very largely to one 

 family of plants, the Compositse, and is especially fond of thistles, 

 wild lettuce, wild sunflower, and ragweed. It is so often seen 

 on thistles, both Canada and bull thistles, that it is commonly 

 known as the thistle bird. Near Washington, D. C, a flock of 

 a dozen birds was seen during the latter part of August feeding 

 on sunflowers that had escaped from cultivation, and in the central 

 and western states the Goldfinches do much good by eating the 

 seeds of wild sunflowers and other closely related weeds. They 

 have also been seen feeding upon wild lettuce (Lactuca spicata), 

 and probably eat prickly lettuce {Lactuca scariola), which has 

 proved the most rapidly spreading weed ever introduced into 

 this country; but as yet no actual observations as to the latter 

 food habit have been made. Stomachs collected in August were 

 filled with seeds of Compositae, mostly sunflowers (various species 

 of Helianthus) and thistles (Carduus lanceolatus and other 

 species.) 



" At Burlington, Iowa, during July and August, Mr. Paul 

 Bartsch found Goldfinches feeding exclusively upon the bull 

 thistle {Carduus lanceolatus). He was able to approach within a 

 few feet of several birds while thus engaged, and noticed that 

 the seeds or akenes were bitten off and swallowed while the 

 plumes or pappus floated away. When there was no wind, the 



