Vol 'i9i^ XV ] Recent Literature. 247 



in a new investigation by Mr. E. R. Kalmbach, 1 Assistant Biologist of the 

 Biological Survey. A large amount of new and more recent information 

 has been collected through correspondence and the number of stomachs 

 upon which conclusions on the food habits of the bird are based, has 

 increased from 909 at the time of the previous report to 2118. 



The matter is clearly and concisely presented under various headings 

 and the results and conclusions summarized at the close of the report. 

 The omnivorous habits of the Crow and the resulting complexity of the 

 problem of determining its worth to man can readily be appreciated when 

 we learn that no less than 656 different items were detected in the stomachs 

 examined. After carefully weighing all the factors in the case, Mr. Kalm- 

 bach concludes that while the Crow undoubtedly does much damage in 

 destroying corn and other crops, poultry, nestlings and eggs of wild birds, 

 etc., nevertheless the enormous amount of good that it does in destroying 

 noxious insects, especially in the early spring, when they are at the lowest 

 ebb of then life cycle, constitutes a benefit that we cannot afford to dispense 

 with. Therefore he considers that while the bird should not be protected 

 no efforts directed toward its extermination should be tolerated. In other 

 words it should be kept at about its present abundance and should be 

 allowed to be shot whenever it is found doing damage. 



In the Delaware Valley, according to the reviewer's experience, there 

 seems no doubt but that the Crow has decreased considerably during recent 

 years, owing apparently to the molestation of the roosts, and if this con- 

 dition prevails over other parts of its range, it may be that by the time 

 another report on the bird's economic value appears, it will be necessary 

 to give it some measure of protection. Ornithologists would be sorry to 

 see a bird of such varied interest and historical association, seriously reduced 

 in numbers, when there is no more call for such action than Mr. Kalmbach 

 has shown, and we sincerely hope that his practical recommendations will be 

 accepted throughout the country. 



This excellent report is illustrated by an admirable colored plate of the 

 Crow from a painting by the author, a map of the United States locating 

 174 Crow roosts, and a diagram showing graphically the food of the Crow 

 throughout the year.— W. S. 



Arthur's ' Birds of Louisiana.' — ■ This list published as a ' Bulletin 

 of the State Department of Conservation ' 2 is issued in response to the 

 demands of schools, nature teachers and others interested in extending a 

 knowledge of the wild birds of the state. Mr. Arthur has done his work 

 well, giving us an authoritative list of species according to the A. O. U. 



1 The Crow and its relation to Man. By E. R. Kalmbach. U. S. Dept. of Agriculture, 

 Bulletin No. 621. February 16, 1918. pp. 1-92. 



2 The Birds of Louisiana. Bulletin 5, State of Louisiana, Department of Conservation, 

 M. L. Alexander, Commissioner. [By Stanley Clisby Arthur, Ornithologist.] pp. 1-80. 

 New Orleans, January 1918, with several maps and other text figures. 



