October 6, 1863. ] 



JOUENAL OF HOBTICULTUEE AND COTTAGE GAEDENEE. 



273 



birds. August, field and shrew mice. September and October, 

 field mice and beetles. November, common and field mice. 

 December, mice, spiders, and woodlice. 



" Barn Owl. — January and February, mice. March, April, 

 May, and June, field mice. July and Aug^t, mice. September 

 and October, field and shrew mice. November, mice and the 

 black rat. December, mice. 



" iJoofc.— January, field mice and larvcc or gi-ub of cockchafer. 

 February, field mice, grub of cockchafer, and red worm. March, 

 grubs and chrj'saUds. April, slugs, worms, and chi-ysalids. 

 May, beetles, grubs, prawns, and wireworms. June, cock- 

 chafers, eggs of birds, and wood-boring beetles. July, young 

 birds, beetles, &c. August, birds, field mice, weevils, crickets, 

 and grasshoppers. September, grubs and worms. October, 

 grasshoppers, ground beetles, and young animals. November, 

 young rabbits and dift'eront insects and grubs. December, dif- 

 ferent animals and decaying substances. 



" Magpie. — January, grub of cockchafers, young beetles, and 

 com and seeds. February, the same and berries. March, the 

 same. AprU, crickets, water rats, and mice. May, cockchafers, 

 glow-worms, and fruits. June, the same and weevils. July, 

 beetles and field mice. August, birds' eggs and weevils. Sep- 

 tember, beetles, worms, bailey, and grasshoppers. October, grass- 

 hoppers, carrion beetles, and green locust. November, grass- 

 hoppers, and kernels of fruits. December, grubs of cockchafers, 

 yoimg rabbits, and berries. 



" Jay. — January, grubs of cockchafers, acorns and berries. 

 Februaiy, chrysalids, and different grains and seeds. March, 

 grubs, insects, wheat, and barley. April, grub of beetles, and 

 snails. May, cockchafers and locusts. June, eggs of birds, 

 cockchafers, and beetles. July, young birds, tiies, and beetles, 

 August, the same, acorns, grubs and dragon-flies. September, 

 the same and fruits. October and November, beetles, slugs, 

 snails, and grain. December, the siune, haws, hips, &c. 



"Starling. — January, worms, grubs of coclcchafers, and the 

 dung of animals. February, grubs, snails, and slugs. March, 

 and Api'il, grubs of cockchafers, and snails. May, the same, 

 and grasshoppers and fruits. June, flies, aind grubs of various 

 flies and fruits. July, grubs, freshwater shell fish, and fruits. 

 August^ flies, glow-worms, and various beetles, and liuit. fSep- 

 tember, gi-een locusts, grubs of carrion, beetles, and worms. 

 October, worms and beetles. November, snaiU, slugs, and grubs. 

 December, 'hips, haws, and buds of trees. 



"Golden Oriole. — January, various chrysaiKds. February, 

 chrysalids and worms. March, grubs and beetles. April, ground 

 beetles and weevils. May, beetles, moths, butterflies, and grubs. 

 June, grubs, grasshoppers, bees, and chen-ies. July, cherries 

 and beetles. August, weevils, chrysalids, fruit, and worms. 

 September, beetles, grubs, worms, and fruit. October, grubs, 

 herbs, chrj'salids, berries, and barley. November, ants and worms. 



" Crested ifooyoe. — January, worms, grubs, and snaUs. Feb- 

 ruary, March, and April, the same and birds. May, ilies, dragon- 

 flies, and gi-ubs of May-flies. Jime, water and land snails, flies. 

 &c. July, August, September, the same and woodlice. Octo- 

 ber and November, snails, fiiea, and spidei-s. December, the 

 same and worms. 



"Green Woodpecker, — JTa/nuary, ants. February, worms and 

 grubs of ants. March, slugs, beetles, and grubs of ants. AprU, 

 ants and worms. May, red ants and grubs of wasps. June, 

 bees and ants. July, red ants. August, red ants and worms. 

 September, ants and worms. October, grub of ants. Novem- 

 ber, grub of ants and bees. December, ants. 



"Reed., Thrush. — March, grubs and insects. April, aquatic 

 grubs. May, grubs of house and dragon flies. June, worms, 

 grubs, flies, and May-flies. July, beetles and dragon-flies. 

 August, worms, eggs of insects, and beetles. September, aquatic 

 insects. 



"Great Titmouse.— January, beetles and eggs of insects. 

 February, grubs. March, winter snails, beetles, and grubs. 

 AprU, cockchafers, beetles, and bees. June, cockchafers, flies, 

 and other insects. July, the same. August, insects and fruits. 

 September, seeds, grasshoppers, and crickets. October, berries. 

 November, seeds. 



" Blackbird. — January and February, seed, spiders, and chry- 

 salids. March, worms, grubs, and buds of trees. AprU, insects, 

 worms, and grubs. May, the same and cockchafers. June, the 

 same and fruit. July, August, and September, all sorts of 

 worms and fruit. October, grubs of butterflies and worms. 

 November and December, seeds and chrysalids. 



" Shylark. — January, seeds of wild plants. February, seeds 

 .and com. March, various insects, worms, seeds, and corn. 

 Atptil, insects, beetles, and corn. May, flies and various insects. 



June, grasshoppers, worms, and com. July, crickets and grass- 

 hoppers. August, insects, corn, and seeds of weeds. September, 

 seeds, worms, and barley. October, November, seeds, com, and 

 berries. December, seeds of wild plants. 



" Redbreast. — January, insects, worms, and chrysalids. Feb- 

 ruary, insects, worms, and woodlice. March, chrysaUds and 

 worms. April, moths, eggs of insects, and cockchafers. May, 

 grubs and beetles. June, flies, moths, spiders, and worms. 

 July, moths, butterflies and woodlice. August and September, 

 the same and worms. October, eggs of insects and aquatic in- 

 sects. November, worms and chrysaUds. December, chrysaUds, 

 grubs, and eggs of moths. 



' ' Nightingale. — February, grubs and worms. March, the 

 same, and chrysaUds and ground beetles. April, flies, meal- 

 worms, beetles, and red worms. May, butterflies, cockchafers, 

 weevUs, and grubs. June, spiders, wood-boring beetles, and 

 worms. July, worms, grubs, eggs of locusts, grasshoppers, 

 moths, and flies. August, locusts, glow-worms, weevils, and 

 grubs. September, locusts, beetles, worms, and dragon-flies. 

 October, grubs, worms, and beetles. November, flies and worms. 



" Linnet. — January, Tebruary, March, and AprU, seeds and 

 berries. May, June, JiJy, August, and September, the same 

 and insects. October, November, and December, berries, seeds, 

 buds of trees, and fruit. 



" Chaffinch. — January, seeds, berries, and kernels of fruit. 

 February, the same and com. March, the same and insects. 

 AprU, moths, flies, and insects of various Idnds. May, cock- 

 chafers, grubs, and eggs of insects. June, the same and wUd 

 fruit. July, the same and grubs of beetles. August, moths and 

 butterflies. September, eggs of insects, worms and seeds. 

 October, wood-boring beetles and insects. November, seeds. 

 December, seeds and buds. 



'• Greenfinch. — January, Februarj-, and March, seeds, berries, 

 wUd fruit, worms, &c. AprU, May, June, July, and August, 

 the same and insects. September, October, November, and 

 December, seeds, berries, worms, and wUd fruit. 



" The Sparrow only lives near the habitations of man. It 

 varies its food according to circumstances. In a wood it lives 

 OB insects asad seeds ; in a vUlage it feeds on seeds, grain, and 

 larvje of butterflies, &c. ; in a city it lives on all kinds of dibris. 

 But it prefers cockchafers and some other insects to aU other 

 food. 



"In looking over this list criticaUy our sparrow-kUlers will 

 probably thiok that M. Florent-Prevost has here ;ind there 

 allowed the advocate rather to interfere with the philosopher, 

 and they may miss some articles of food which it is notorious 

 that birds consume ; and in his zeal to show the amazing quantity 

 of insects destroyed by his little protiges the proportion of fruit, 

 grains, &c., also consumed perhaps scarcely accords with our less 

 accurate observation. StUl these results are obtained by actual 

 inspection, and we may be sure that everything enumerated has 

 been f >uud. And we mu.st remember that these e.xpwimeQts 

 were made in France, and that the food of hii'ds wiU always t)e 

 largely influenced by local peculiarities. 



" It is worth mentioning that a study of M. Florent- Pre vest's 

 specimens showed another important fact ranging beyond the 

 above Usts — that many birds, namely, living a good dea'l tipon 

 grain, feed their yoimg entUely on insects, so that they are 

 serving us admirably in this way at a season when insects are 

 most rife, even when the examination of their own stomachs 

 would lead us to denounce them as little better than mere 

 plunderers. 



" And here I woiUd draw attention to the value of another 8$t 

 of experiments recently reported in the papers, as suggestive of 

 the incredible quantity of insects destroyed by such agencies. 

 A gentleman took some yoimg Eobins and fed them himself, 

 weighing them and their food accurately day by day, to discover 

 what quantity a young bird required to keep it in a growing and 

 healthy condition. As he went on he became more and more 

 astounded at the results ; and he found that, taking the common 

 earthworm as a representative of the food, the daUy supply 

 required to keep a young Robin in its highest health, laid end 

 to end would reach the almost incredible length of 14 feet. This 

 seems amazing, but those will not hesitate to believe it who have 

 watched the incessant activity during the long hours of a sum- 

 mer's day of a pair of birds with a nest of yoimg. But let U3 

 put this and that together when we wish properly to estimate the 

 services of this invaluable Uttle thief-catcher, and with a true 

 conception of the part he has to play among us, let us do what 

 we can to save him from the wanton shot and cowardly poison. 

 " I am, Sii', your obedient servant, 



" Bejcn-m Club. " EDWAED WILSON." 



