460 IOWA DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 



Somewhat later in their arrival are the yellow-billed cuckoo, the black- 

 billed cuckoo, the yellow warbler, the red-eyed vireo, the warbling vireo, the 

 Baltimore oriole, the orchard oriole, and the scarlet tanager. These birds 

 get their food principally from the trees. It consists of caterpillars and other 

 insects hatched from the eggs overlooked by the woodpeckers, chickadees, 

 and nuthatches. These are birds assisted every spring and fall by the great 

 army of wood warblers on their way to and from their nesting grounds 

 farther north. During this season our orchard seems actually to be alive 

 with flashing wings, eating bills, and singing throats. 



Among these later arrivals are birds that wage a continuous warfare 

 against the mosquitoes, flying ants, gnats, flies, beetles, moths, and all 

 the other insect life of the air. These are the swallows, and the birds 

 belonging to the flycatcher family, such as the king-bird, phoebe, woodpe- 

 wee, least flycatcher, great crested flycatcher and others. This work is 

 continued into the night by the nighthawk and whippoorwill. 



Since the birds work so faithfully and continuously for us, we may well 

 ask what we are doing for them. 



It is said on good authority that each cat is responsible for about fifty 

 song-birds a year, and one cat was known to destroy six birds' nest in a 

 single day. Some bird lovers keep their cats shut up during the nesting 

 season. 



Were we to remain upon the farm this summer I should have a corn crib 

 made cat-tight and care for the cats in that during the nesting season, at 

 least, or until the young birds were able to fly. 



There are many things we can do to attract the birds to our homes, one 

 being to set out mulberry trees, and Juneberry bushes, the fruit of which the 

 birds are exceedingly fond of, so much so that they will leave strawberries, 

 and even cherries, for these, to them, more luscious fruits. 



These birds which I have called by their names and many species besides, 

 numbering in all over seventy, have been identified in this vicinity by myself 

 and others. There are several birds here at certain seasons of the year 

 which we have thus far been unable to fully identify, and there is no doubt 

 in my mind that there are many we have not even had a glimpse of. 



I came across this quotation from the Bible the other day, found in 

 Deut. 22:6-7, with which I will close my paper: 



' ' If a bird's nest chance to be before the in the way, in any tree or on 

 the ground, whether they be young ones, or eggs, and the dam sitting upon 

 the young, or upon the eggs, thou shalt not take the dam with the young; 

 but thou shalt in any wise let the dam go, that it may be well with thee, 

 and that thou mayest prolong thy days. " 



