•^44 



The American Aturlcr. 



This idea has been instilled into the 

 mind of every lad, whether brought up 

 in the country or city. Yet the present 

 feeling seems to be that these predatory 

 birds are far more sinned against than 

 sinning. A pamphlet has been issued 

 this season, by Dr. C. Hart Merriam, 

 Chief of the Division of Ornithology 

 and Mammology, in the Department of 

 Agriculture, in regard to his division 

 of opinion. This pamphlet is a com- 

 plete description of the birds in 

 question, and by far the most exhaus- 

 tive one that has yet appeared on the 

 subject. Probably it will be best to 

 quote the Doctor's own words as to the 

 result of his examinations in the 

 matter : 



"The statements contained in Bulle- 

 tin No. 3, respecting the food of the 

 various hawks and owls, are based on 

 the critical examination, by scientific 

 experts, of the actual contents of about 

 2,700 stomachs of these birds, and con- 

 sequently may be fairly regarded as a 

 truthful showing of the normal food of 

 each species. The result proves that a 

 class of birds commonly looked upon 

 as enemies to the farmer, and indis- 

 criminately destroyed whenever occa- 

 sion offers, really rank among his best 

 friends, and, with few exceptions, 

 should be preserved and encouraged to 

 take up their abode in the neighbor- 

 hood of his home. Only six of the 

 seventy-three species and subspecies of 

 hawks and owls of the United States 

 are injurious. Of these, three are so 

 extremely rare they need hardly be 

 considered, and another (the fish hawk) 

 is only indirectly injiirious, leaving but 

 two (the Sharp-shinned and Cooper's 

 hawks) that really need to be taken 

 into account as eneinies to agriculture. 

 Omitting the six species that feed 

 largely on poultry and game, 2,212 



stomachs were examined, of which 

 56 per cent, contained mice and other 

 small mammals, 27 per cent, insects, 

 and only 3^^ per cent, poultry or game 

 birds. In view of these facts, the folly 

 of offering bounties for the destruction 

 of hawks and owls, as has been done 

 by several States, becomes apparent, 

 and the importance of an accurate 

 knowledge of the economic status of 

 our common birds and mammals is 

 overwhelmingly demonstrated." 



Hi ^ Hi 



The writer is disappointed in Dr. 

 Merriam 's conclusions. He states that 

 his deductions are made, after omitting 

 six of those which he acknowledges are 

 birds of prey, simply and purely. Of 

 these six, he writes that three of them 

 are so rare as to amount to but little in 

 forming an opinion on the subject. He 

 includes the osprey — great fishing hawk 

 — as one of the six, and the other two 

 as destructive ones, the Sharp-shinned 

 and Cooper's hawks. The writer ac- 

 knowledges that the matter has never 

 been the subject of close study on his 

 part, but, as one somewhat familiar 

 with the habits of our birds, it comes 

 to his mind that the shrike or butcher 

 bird is as much of a savage, delighting 

 in blood for blood's sake, as ever was 

 Bengal tiger in the bamboo thickets of 

 India. Not a few, biit in a great num- 

 ber of instances, during my shooting 

 outings, have I run across the smaller 

 fly catchers as also the American spar- 

 rows impaled upon a short, sharp bit of 

 twig. So often did this occur that it 

 led me to investigation, with the result 

 that I learned that this impalement 

 was the result of the action of the 

 butcher bird, as the shrike was locally 

 designated. I am aware that the shrike 

 is also an insect feeder, but that he 

 loves to catch and kill, even when not 



