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Bird Notes and News 



of insects all their lives. Who has not seen 

 the common Sparrow chasing the butterflies 

 in Paris ? As to the insect-eaters they live 

 on insects and eat a prodigious quantity. 

 A Tit will consume one and a half times 

 his own weight in a day, and other insecti- 

 vores are almost as voracious." 



BIRD-LIFE AT ASTON ROWANT. 



The following interesting account of the 

 birds of Aston Rowant Gardens (Oxon.), 

 valuable as the opinion of a practical horti- 

 culturist, comes from Mr. G. Abbey, who 

 also sends a list of resident, migrant, and 

 visiting species he has observed, which 

 make up a total of ninety-five : — 



"Of nearly one hundred species in this 

 garden or vicinity, some forty-nine are 

 residents, twenty-three summer migrants, 

 twenty-three winter and occasional visitors. 

 I find a similar total in all large gardens of 

 my acquaintance, with only few exceptions — 

 as in the Lake district and on the Yorkshire 

 coast, where aquatic birds swell the list, to- 

 gether with occasional rare birds seen only 

 once or twice in a lifetime. 



" Most large gardens are ideal natural 

 bird-sanctuaries, suitable for the study of 

 their economic value to vegetation generally. 

 Out of the ninety-five here, at least thirty- 

 two are almost entirely insectivorous, 

 namely : Robin, Hedge-Sparrow, Wren, 

 Treecreeper, Nuthatch, Green, Greater, and 

 Lesser Spotted Woodpeckers, Pied Wagtail, 

 Tree Pipit, Goldcrest, Great, Blue, Cole, 

 Marsh, and Longtailed Tits, Cuckoo, Swift, 

 Swallow, Martin, Blackcap, Nightingale, 

 Common and Lesser Whitethroats, Chiff- 

 chafif, Willow-Wren, Redstart, Spotted Fly- 

 catcher. These in consequence of their 

 value, claim complete protection. Many 

 additions to the list might be made, but I 

 consider these the pre-eminent insect 

 destroyers. I should add the Barn and Brown 

 Owls, also the Kestrel, so persecuted by 

 keepers, more because it is a Hawk than for 

 any damage it does to game. 



" The quantity of pests destroyed an- 

 nually by the birds even on this short fist re- 

 quires no strength of imagination. Some 

 idea can be formed by watching the parent- 

 birds feed the young for a few hours, and by 

 totalling the hours, days, and weeks, and 



the number of parents and nestlings in a 

 single garden. This leaves no doubt as to 

 how vegetation would fare without them. 

 Many seed and fruit-eating birds, in fact, 

 nearly all birds, feed their young on insects, 

 grubs, caterpillars, and the like, so that we 

 have in birds an important factor in horti- 

 culture and agriculture, and one that cannot 

 be overestimated. 



" In garden, farm, and game-preserve we 

 have a wild field, and better education is 

 needed as to the real value of bird -life. 

 Keepers and gardeners should be very 

 practical naturalists, as no one has better 

 opportunity for studjdng birds' habits, but 

 as a rule both are deficient in this knowledge 

 and do what is worst for their own interests. 

 Rare species are at once shot, either for 

 curiosity or identification. Collectors are 

 equally guilty. Game-preserving accounts 

 for the decimation of some of our most useful 

 birds. Here we had quite a number of 

 Kestrels a few years ago ; several nested in 

 this garden annually ; but two or three 

 years since a smart trapper or two came on 

 the scene. By chance I came across their 

 " vermin-pole " ; at least fifty Kestrels 

 were nailed up, with the usual cats' tails, 

 weasels, stoats, an odd Magpie, numerous 

 Jays, and, least of all, rats' tails. That 

 the Kestrel is an enemy I do not believe, 

 having lived on game estates all my life and 

 not having met with one single proof that 

 game is part of its diet. 



" Ten years ago a moderate number only 

 of Wood-Pigeons existed here, and quite a 

 lot of Jays. The invasion of trappers soon 

 reduced the Jays to nil. Formerly we had 

 a number in the garden, now all have 

 vanished. These two species afford a fine 

 example of Nature's balance. The Jay we 

 know to be very fond of eggs, particularly 

 the Ring-Dove's ; and until two or three 

 years ago this kept the balance about right. 

 With the destruction of the Jays, the Wood- 

 pigeons have increased from hundreds to 

 thousands. 



" Owls, for Protective and other reasons, 

 escape here, but generally they share the fate 

 of Kestrel and Jay. Our stock is quite a 

 dozen. Most orchards suffer from the Codlin 

 Moth grub. Here we form the exception, 

 and this I attribute to the work of the three 

 Woodpeckers, Nuthatch, Treecreeper, and 

 Tits, especially the Blue and Great Tits. 



