66 Pheascmts and Agriculture . 



Birds were not sent, but only their crops with their contents, and 

 the method of deahng with these was in the main that described by 

 Hammond in his paper entitled "Investigation concerning the Food of 

 certain Birds," published in the Journal of Agricultural Science, Vol. iv, 

 Pt 4, p. 382. The senders were supplied with forms on which to record 

 certain facts such as sex, when and where killed, etc. Jars of spirit 

 were also jKOvided into which the duly labelled crops were immediately 

 put, and which were sent to Cambridge when full. They are indicated 

 in Tables II and III by the Roman numerals. Besides cereal grains and 

 agricultural seeds six kinds of food were recognised — roots and stems 

 of weeds, weed leaves, flowers, weed seeds, insects and "miscellaneous." 

 The "miscellaneous" category embraced such odds and ends as stones, 

 shot, and an occasional worm, slug or spider. 



The roots and stems were often unidentifiable with certainty, but 

 the following were recognised: bulbs of lesser celandine, stems or roots 

 of dock, horsetail, and bulbous buttercup. 



The leaves included grass, pine needles, lesser celandine, thistle, 

 ground ivy, cabbage, clover, medick, ribwort, plantain, species of Poly- 

 gonum, sainfoin, daisy, dead nettle, scarlet pimpernel, chickweed, bed- 

 straw, buttercup, goose-grass, species of Potentilla, geranium, bracken, 

 beech, sheep's sorrel, campion, poppy, blackberry, convolvulus, hawthorn, 

 together with many fragments which were beyond identification. 



Among the flowers were noted buttercup, hazel catkins, sedges, 

 gorse, woodrufE, dandelion, sainfoin, campion, knapweed, poppy and 

 numerous fragments of inflorescences of composite weeds not easily 

 distinguishable. 



Among the weed seeds (and fruits) were noted privet berries and 

 seeds, larch, slender false brome, fat hen, hawthorn, knot-grass, meadow 

 grass, goose grass, field pansy, ribwort, wild hemp, nettle, campion, 

 Persicaria, Rubus sp., black bindweed, sheep's sorrel, acorns, ash, pine, 

 hedge parsley, spurrey, sedges, rush sp., chickweed, meadow grass, vetch, 

 sandwort, mouse-ear, shepherd's purse, buttercup, scarlet pimpernel, 

 sheep's fescue, hard fescue, meadow fescue, charlock, enchanter's night- 

 shade, field madder, greater plantain, silver birch and a few others. 



The insects were very various. I include here the spangle galls of 

 the oak, of which pheasants seem to be particularly fond, apparently 

 relishing the enclosed grub. Other insects were earwigs, thrips, spring- 

 tails, Psocids, Carabid beetles and grubs, Staphylinid beetles and grubs, 

 many weevils, notably Sitones, Telephorid grubs, click beetles and wire- 

 worms, chafers, a few ladybirds, flea-beetles, saw-flies, ants, surface 



