168 LAND-BIRDS. 



Their food consists of grasshoppers, mice, and principally 

 our smaller winter birds of the Finch-tribe who associate in 

 flocks, — the Snow-birds, Snow Buntings, Tree Sparrows, 

 " Red-polls," and Pine Finches. I have seen one dart after 

 a flock of Goldfinches, who escaped by flying upwards. The 

 Shrike followed with effort and a rather laborious flight, until, 

 despairing of success, he turned and dropped wdth the speed 

 of an arrow, arresting himself instantaneously on approaching 

 the earth. He afterwards dashed into a company of Tree Spar- 

 rows, who showed much less address in escaping his clutches. 

 They separated and fled to the bushes : he followed one through 

 a thicket and seized him on the other side. The Shrikes have 

 several times been known, in their boldness, to enter cages, and 

 to kill the inmates, though sometimes fortunately trapped them- 

 selves afterwards. 



The " Butcher-birds " are best known by their notorious 

 practice of impaling their food upon thorns or the like, thus 

 securing, according to a European superstition, nine victims 

 every day, whence they are in some places called " nine-kill- 

 ers." There are three theories often advanced to explain this 

 extraordinary and characteristic cruelty, as follows : That the 

 Shrikes are fond of tainted meat ; that they are naturally provi- 

 dent for the future ; and that they employ their food, to a cer- 

 tain extent, as bait. The former of these theories may be 

 refuted by the evidence, which has, I believe, been generally 

 given, even from observations upon specimens in confinement, 

 that the " Butcher-birds " never feed upon these stores. The 

 last theory is absurd, as Wilson has already demonstrated, 

 since they can at any time, by swiftness and dexterity of flight, 

 seize a small bird who ventures near them, and need never 

 resort to guile or deceit, and since, if grasshoppers be the crea- 

 tures impaled, our winter birds, upon whom the Shrikes prey, 

 are all granivorous or seed-eating, never touching insects (ex- 

 cept, perhaps, in summer), and since in many cases the victims 

 impaled are birds, who certainly would not serve satisfactorily 

 as bait to attract their friends. I regret very much that I have 

 not had opportunities enough for studying thoroughly the habits 

 of the " Butcher-birds " to decide this question, but, in want of 



