The Food of Birds. 115 



Table of the Food of the Robin. {Turefus »n'£-raf0ftus, L.) Concluded. 



* Includes Bibio. J Includes ants. ° Includes fruits. 



[ Note. — In the foregoing tables, the integers indicate the number of birds 

 found to eat the element against which they are placed, and the decimals ex- 

 press the ratio of this element to the whole food of the month. October and De- 

 cember were omitted in computing the general averages for the year, on account 

 of the small number of birds examined for those months.] 



MiMUS CAROLINENSIS, L. ThE CaTBIRD. 



This bird, scarcely less abundant than the robin, arrives 

 later and makes a shorter stay, coming late in April or 

 early in May, and disappearing from this latitude usually 

 in September. It also occupies a larger territory in the 

 state in midsummer than the robin, being not at all rare 

 in extreme southern Illinois in July and August. I do not 

 know that it ever winters northward. Its habits and fa- 

 vorite haunts are so similar to those of the robin that one 

 might not unreasonably anticipate that, respecting their 

 food, both could be considered as one species ; but we shall 

 see proof that there are specific food characteristics to 

 separate them. 



