Monthly Bulletin 7 



passed by our Congress, although the companion law is already in effect 

 in Canada. The Senate passed this measure, but war business has delayed 

 concurrence in it by the House. It will not have to pass the Senate again. 

 Under this law an entirely new set of regulations, already agreed upon by 

 the Secretary of Agriculture and his advisers, will replace those now in ef- 

 fect. While virtually the same in respect to shooting seasons, they prohibit 

 the sale of migratory birds anywhere in the United States, and fix a uniform 



bag limit. 



USEFUL STARLINGS. 



Mrs. Henry H. Seaver, of Templeton, recently told an interesting story 

 of the vermin-destroying work of a family of starlings, the first noticed in 

 her neighborhood. A noise in the wainscotting of a downstairs room first 

 called the attention of the family to the fact that something unusual was 

 going on there. Search disclosed that the starlings had entered at a waste- 

 pipe hole near the ground on the side of the house and were building there. 

 After the young birds were hatched, the parents were found to be most in- 

 dustrious caterpillar-hunters. They were seen to bring^many gipsy moth cater- 

 pillars and, in one session, fifty of those of the browntail moth. As there 

 were no browntails in the immediate vicinity of the house, the birds were 

 watched and were found to be bringing them from an ancient apple tree 

 in a pasture some distance away. This tree they practically cleared of the 

 troublesome insects before the food campaign was over. Whatever the gen- 

 eral reputation of the starling may be, Mrs. Seaver is firm in the belief 

 that this pair of starlings were useful birds. 



MEMORIAL BIRD SANCTUARY. 



The "New Haven Register" thus congratulates the Connecticut city of 

 Waterbury on its new bird sanctuary: 



"The city of Waterbury is to be congratulated on its acquisition of a 

 large tract of land which is to be used as a sanctuary for birds. The land 

 is given the city as a memorial, and is believed to be the first of its kind in 

 this country. It consists of 36 acres and includes clumps of evergreens 

 which have long been familiar to all bird-lovers of the city, for each year 

 these groups of trees have been the resting place of the birds on their mi- 

 grations each spring and fall. 



"The entire acreage is of land in a natural wild condition, and very 

 little change is contemplated in this respect. The desire is to retain the 

 attractive safety which has made the place so inviting for birds. In trans- 

 ferring the property to the city, or in whatever form is taken to set it apart 

 as a public park, this matter is to be carefully guarded. 



"The land is given to the city by Mr. and Mrs. William E. Fulton, and 

 will set an example worthy of imitation for others who desire to give memo- 

 rials which will be of benefit to the communities in which they live. 



"In recent years the necessity for the provision of sanctuary for birds by 

 setting aside certain tracts which will be immune from the ravages of the 

 small boys with the rifle or the pot-hunter with the sawed-off shotgun has 

 become more and more evident. In giving the city of Waterbury such a 

 memorial Mr. and Mrs. Fulton by their careful thought not only earn the 

 gratitude of the city and the legions of bird-lovers all over the State, but 

 provide as that memorial one which by its very uniqueness most fulfills the 

 aims of the donors and becomes a civic asset for Waterbury as well." 



