^"■'Sg?'^] Beal, Food of European Birds. 9 



ment Station at Halle. ^ Another paper by Mr. John Gilmour " 

 of Fifeshire, Scotland, treats of the food of the Rook, the Wood 

 Pigeon {Columba pahanbus) and the Starling (^Stunuis vulgaris). 

 These two papers are interesting contributions to the literature 

 concerning the food of three rather important birds, but they can 

 only be considered as giving glimpses of a field in which much 

 remains to be done. 



Dr. Hollrung gives the following statement of the food found 

 in 131 stomachs of Rooks killed in April, May and June, within a 

 narrow limit of territory : Larvae of Zahnis gibbiis., 48 ; wire worms 

 (Elaterid larvoe), 20; grub worms, 253; May beetles, 160; 

 weevils {Otioryiic/uts)^ 1688; weevils {Tanytnecus)., 22; snails; 

 mice, 17 ; grains of wheat, 420 ; grains of barley, 471 ; grains of 

 oats, 190 ; cherries, 22. 



From these examinations Dr. Hollrung has arrived at the fol- 

 lowing general conclusions : 



" I. The Rooks examined have proved on the whole neither 

 exclusively useful nor exclusively injurious. While 25 per cent 

 of the Rooks' stomachs contained no vegetable matter, there were 

 only two cases in 131 where no animal matter was found. 



"2. Their food consisted for the most part (about 66 per cent) 

 of animal matter, such as mice, larva? of the grain-eating Carabid 

 {Zabriis gibbus), grub worms {Afelo/ontka vulgaris)., dung beetles 

 {Ap/zodius spec.) , and clover weevils (^Otiorynchiis ligustici). The 

 vegetable food was made up of wheat, oats, and barley, and 

 cherries. 



"'3. The harm done by the Rooks on the one hand was per- 

 fectly balanced, and even considerably outweighed on the other 

 hand by the useful services rendered. 



" 4. The Rooks feed principally on slowly moving insects." 



In the investigations made by Mr. Gilmour the stomachs of 336 

 birds were examined, not counting 19 that were empty. They 



' Untersuchungeu iiber den Mageninhalt der Saatkrahe {Corvus friigile- 

 gus L.) Dr. M. Hollrung. yter Jahresbericht Versuchs-station f. I'flanzen- 

 schutz zu Ilalle a. S. 1895, pp. 5-26. 



^ An inquiry Concerning the Relations of Certain Birds to the Agricultural 

 Interest, as shown by their Diet. John Gilmour. Trans. Highland and Agri. 

 Soc. Scotland, 1896. Fifth Series, Vol. VHI, pp. 21-113. 



