250 PROPAGATION OF WILD BIRDS 



native birds from those they have occupied, destroying 

 their eggs or young. Even a bird as large as the flicker is 

 seldom able to defend its nest-hole against them. Within 

 two blocks of my home I saw one spring five new flickers' 

 holes which were seized by starlings. I have been told of a 

 starling being seen in the act of dragging out a young 

 martin from a nest in a martin house. 



Danger of Introducing Species. The case of the starling 

 is a good illustration of the uncertainties and dangers in- 

 volved in introducing species to new surroundings. In 

 Europe the starling is usually liked, and Baron von Ber- 

 lepsch encourages them to nest in the walls of his castle. 

 But, introduced into Australia and New Zealand, it has be- 

 come a pest, as it is already becoming in this country. In 

 Europe conditions of bird life are somewhat different, and 

 the valuable species are somehow able to hold their own; 

 while here the few kinds which nest in hollows are not able 

 to maintain themselves against this new invasion. 



Method of Poisoning. The following method for poison- 

 ing English sparrows, which is also applicable to starlings, 

 is described in Farmer^ s Bulletin 493, U. S. Department of 

 Agriculture, ''The English Sparrow as a Pest," by Ned Dear- 

 born. Wheat is preferred as a bait and vehicle for admin- 

 istering the drug. Put one eighth ounce of pulverized 

 strychnine into three fourths of a gill of hot water, add one 

 and one half teaspoonful of starch or wheat flour moistened 

 with a few drops of cold water, and heat, stirring constantly 

 until the mixture thickens. Pour the hot poisoned starch 

 over one quart of small kernelled wheat, and stir until every 

 grain is coated. This will quickly dry and can be kept in a 

 glass jar. 



The best plan is to bait the birds in advance to a certain 

 spot. With sparrows this is easy to do in cold weather, 



