76 



CALIFOENIA FISH AND GAME. 



first day of February in each year to 

 the first day of September following, and 

 such extension of special closed season 

 as may be necessary to prevent extermi- 

 nation of particular species of birds. 



4. Such restrictions upon the use of 

 all sporting arms of whatever type as may 

 be necessary to preserve a normal breed- 

 ing supply of useful wild creatures. 



5. A transcontinental system of game 

 I'cfugos and forest reserves. 



6. A wise system of practical laws en- 

 couraging the breeding and sale of propa- 

 gated game and food birds. 



THE ENGLISH SPARROW CAMPAIGN 

 IN REDLANDS. 



The October number of California 

 Fish and Game made some mention of 

 the English sparrow campaign being con- 

 ducted by the city of Rcdlands, and a 

 brief summary of the results of that 

 campaign to date is therefore timely. I 

 am indebted to Mr. I. Cushmau Gray of 

 the city clerk's office for most of the data 

 given as evidenced by the city records. 



For several years past English spar- 

 rows have apparently been gaining ground 

 in Redlands, until last winter and spring 

 they were becoming an alarmingly con- 

 spicuous element of what might be termed 

 "the downtown fauna." They have been 

 reported a number of times from the 

 Heights and other outlying parts of the 

 city, but I myself have seen them only 

 in the business district and the thickly 

 settled region immediately environing it. 

 In my yard, a little over two miles from 

 the heart of town, I have never seen an 

 English sparrow during the most con- 

 stant watch, though a number of the 

 native sparrows are common enough. 

 Downtown it has been othei"wise, and an 

 increasing feeling that municipal action 

 was the only way to combat successfully 

 the menace of the increasing numbers of 

 the invading sparrow finally culminated 

 in a resolution of the uoard of trustees 

 authorizing a war of extermination. This 

 was duly begun on July 19th. The work 

 was placed under the direct supervision 

 of the city marshal, and shooting was the 

 general method employed. Several hunt- 

 ers were engaged in the work at a com- 

 pensation paid by the city, but dependent 

 upon the number of birds killed. This 

 was at the rate of five cents per head 



until the "game" proved so scarce or hard 

 to find that it became necessary to raise 

 the bounty to ten cents in order to in- 

 sure the completion of the work. The 

 higher bounty has been in effect since the 

 0th of September. Up to the time of 

 writing (the last of November), a total 

 of 4,265 birds have been killed. The 

 catch is apportioned through the respec- 

 tive months as follows : 



Julv 19 to August 30 1,528 



September 1 to 30 1,841 



October 1 to 31 862 



November 34 



Total 4,265 



The cost to the city is represented by 



the following figures : 



1,729 birds at 5 cents each__ $86 45 

 2,536 birds at 10 cents each- 253 60 



Total cost to city $340 05 



Judging from the reports which have 

 come in to them, the city officials be- 

 lieve that the campaign has been quite 

 thorough. But few of the sparrows are 

 now seen in the city, and these are said 

 to be mostly on the outskirts, though I 

 am aware of one colony and have been 

 told of another close to town, which are 

 not yet entirely stamped out. Therefore 

 the campaign is held to be practically 

 closed. 



Probably the most difficult problem con- 

 nected with the execution of an anti- 

 sparrow campaign is that of the success- 

 ful eradication of the European bird 

 without too great damage to our many 

 useful species of native sparrows, the 

 presence of which is so indispensable to 

 the agriculturist, yet which so frequently 

 suffer confusion at the hands of the lay- 

 man with their undesirable foreign cous- 

 ins. Concerning the success with which 

 this difficulty was surmounted in the pres- 

 ent instance, opinions vary. Without 

 attempting to take a stand either way, it 

 may be that a brief reference to the 

 diverging views may be of value to those 

 who are planning or have in hand a 

 similar campaign elsewhere. The men 

 in charge of the campaign claim that less 

 than 1 per cent of the total birds killed 

 were of species other than the one 

 sought. On the other hand several citi- 

 zens not connected with the hunt itself, 

 but interested in the preservation of 

 valuable birds equally with the destruc- 



