DIAMOND-BACK MOTH. 129 



and kittiwake) that had settled on one-half of it, and seemed to remain 

 there day and night. I never actually detected them eating anything ; 

 on the contrary, they seemed to be wandering about in rather an 

 aimless way." — (W. D. A.) 



On examining the condition of the crop, however, Mr, Anderson 

 found that the Diamond-back Moth caterpillar was very plentiful on 

 the half of the field occupied by the gulls ; whilst he was only able to 

 find one or two specimens on the portion of the field which was 

 neglected by the birds. Also it was mentioned that about eight miles 

 south of the locality there was a similar occurrence with a blighted 

 crop, the farmer attributing the destruction of his Turnips to the 

 ravages of the gulls. 



In the case of this infestation, birds of several kinds play such a 

 very useful part as remedial agents, that, as it is possible I may not 

 have such an appropriate occasion again of drawing attention to it, I 

 refer now specially to the matter, and to the great importance when 

 flocks appear in large numbers of (not only) not driving them away, 

 but also of instituting careful search beneath the Turnip leaves to see 

 whether infestation is present and needs looking after. 



Besides the sea gulls, which were also noted from Lancashire as 

 frequenting some Diamond-back-infested land in great numbers, and 

 also doing service at a locality in Northumberland, starlings have 

 been especially noticed as useful. This bird is more repeatedly re- 

 ported as a helper against the caterpillars than any other kind, the 

 notes constantly recurring that, — starlings frequented the infested 

 land ; starlings in flocks were noted feeding ; many starlings when we 

 had the caterpillars ; starlings are especially useful in clearing the 

 caterpillars ; starlings present in thousands ; and also that starlings 

 had done much good. 



Other birds were also mentioned as doing good, and amongst them 

 the Lapwing, or Peewit ( Vanellus cristatus) ; but in the great attack of 

 the Diamond-back Moth in 1891, which (besides other localities) was 

 present in the counties along our eastern seaboard from Dover in Kent 

 to Aberdeenshire in North Britain, the replies to the question sent out 

 in my official circular of various inquiries as Entomologist of the Royal 

 Agricultural Society regarding what kind of birds helped in the great 

 trouble, specified the starling as by far the most serviceable. 



Details of the attack, with some means of prevention and remedy, 

 and much other information, will be found in my Annual Report for 

 1891, pp. 105-164. 



