1921.] Economic Status of the Kingfisher. 143 



the larvpe of various insects have been observed in the bircFs 

 beak when alighting before entering the nest, Fisli are 

 sometimes hehl crosswise, in which case the bird jerks them 

 upwards catching them head downwards. In other cases 

 they are held lengthwise, either by the head or the tail, and 

 swallowed, this action being accompanied by a throw-back of 

 the head. 



When newly hatched the young are fed by the parents, 

 but after a time they frequently do no more than deposit 

 the food about half-way along the passage. In some cases 

 it is allowed to remain there and become trampled down 

 into the putrid mass of material which has accumulated 

 there. 



4. Depredations. — Tiie opinion is frequently expressed 

 that the Kingfisher destroys large numbers of young trout, 

 and such an opinion seldom loses anything in its repetition, 

 so that among a certain class of people this bird has come 

 to be regarded as an enemy and injurious to all fishing 

 preserves and hatcheries. 



As is frequently the case where the food of a bird is con- 

 cerned, careful observation and investigation do not bear 

 out or even lend any support to the views just mentioned. 

 Indeed, one can scarcely imagine any other factor that 

 Avouhl remove so many enemies of fish ova and fry with so 

 little injury. 



Unfortunately, once a bird is given a bad name, it is 

 difficult to clear its character, and writers who should know 

 better persist in repeating the inaccurate stories as to the 

 number of fish destroyed, etc. The ultimate result of all 

 this condemnation is that in many parts of the country the 

 Kingfisher is shot down mercilessly, and is slowly but surely 

 becoming rarer, much to the detriment of all trout streams. 



IV. Examination of Old Nests and Pellets. 



1. Nest Contents. — An examination of one hundred and 

 twenty nest-contents shows them to consist entirely of 

 animal remains, of which fish constitutes 59*5 per cent., 



