v„i. xi^^-l Ecommuc Section. 319 



or othorwisr a'iiock of Crows will clear up the carcass of any 

 animal in a very short time : if not too tou^^'li in the skin 

 they get to work at once a touf^h-skinncd animal lias to \n: left 

 till softened by decomposition hut the result is always the same, 

 nothing left but bare bones. 



During the spring of last year I came across a very good illus- 

 tration of their usefulness. Riding out one morning, I found a 

 (U'ad fox -it had just reached that stage when the whole thing 

 was a moving mass. I was coming back the same way in an 

 hour or so, so decided to burn it on my return ; however, Crows 

 found it in the meantime, and left absolutely nothing but a few 

 scattered bones. I searched the ground carefully to see if any 

 maggots had escaped, but could find none. Another illustration : 

 I wanted to find a suitable spot to liberate some chalcid wasps, 

 and, thinking of some sheep that had been bogged in a tank 

 recently and the carcasses thrown out on the bank, I took my 

 little boxful of wasps thither. The chalcid attacks the pupal 

 cases of the fly, so it is necessary to find the host in the proper 

 condition, and, knowing the time it takes for the fly to pupate, 

 these sheep remains should have been in the proper condition ; 

 however, again the Crows got there first, and, hunt as I would, 

 under the carcass or under the surface of the ground, I could 

 not find one. There were the marks where the Crows had picked 

 up the ground, to five or six yards away from the carcasses, and 

 had apparently found every pupal case. 



It is stated on all sides that Crows kill sheep and lambs. They 

 do, beyond any doubt ; but it is the already dying sheep, and 

 generally the weakling among the lambs. In good seasons, when 

 everything is favourable to the sheep, the lambing percentage is 

 also good, in spite of Crows. 



During the past three or four months we have passed through 

 one of the worst droughts known. Many sheep and lambs died 

 of povertv ; many a one I found down, with one eye or two 

 eyes out, hut I cannot attribute the death of a single sheep or 

 lamb to tlie Crows. They undoubtedly hastened the end ; but 

 wli(>n sheep reach the stage of emaciation that they have to be 

 lifted up, death is inevitable, and the attacks of the Crows (and 

 they never overlook a fallen sheep), cruel though it appears, 

 in all probability sinij^ly saves the poor animals more prolonged 

 suffering. 



In conclusion, I would ask those interested in sheep not to 

 condemn the birds without a fair trial. Weigh the good and 

 bad, and I honestly believe the balance will he found in favour 

 of protection as against destruction. 



X.B. — I have used the word Crow all through, hut the more' 

 common bird here is the Raven. 



Birds and Grasshoppers. — The vahu- (A l)ir(ls in keeping down 

 insect pests is aptly illustrated in this note from Mr. 11. F. Jones : — 



