Hedgerow Life 
so that it is quite easy to add up the 
number of mice which are killed to 
support only one family of owls. For 
their chief food is mice and rats, with 
a few birds, which are mostly sparrows. 
These are caught when sleeping in ivy 
and in stacks by the owls, which hover 
and flutter in front of their nesting- 
places, and snatch at them whenever 
they can hear a rustling. 
This is rather an unpleasant awakening 
for the poor sparrows, but owls must 
live as well as sparrows. It isn’t, after 
all, any worse for them than it is for the 
mice. While they are nibbling in the 
fields, and fancying that they are quite 
safe—for there isn’t the slightest noise 
to be heard by their sharp ears— 
suddenly a great something swoops 
down on them out of nowhere ; they see 
F 
