THE ENGLISH SPARROW IN CANADA. 



OWEVER little attention may 

 be given to the subject, one 

 cannot fail to recognize the 

 economic value of our Canadian birds. 

 It will be obvious also, to even the most 

 casual observer that changes have taken 

 place among the feathered tribes in the 

 last few years. Perhaps the farmer 

 wonders why it is, that he hears so few 

 early morning songsters this year, or 

 why the bluebird never nests in the 

 hollow gatepost any more, or maybe 

 he wonders why the chimney swallow 

 does not build her peculiar nest on the 

 inside boards of the barn as he has re- 

 membered her to do ever since he was 

 a boy. 



It is a very evident and also lament- 

 able fact, that our insectivorous birds 

 are becoming scarcer every year. In 

 answer to questions sent out by the 

 Bureau of Industries in "95 re bluebirds, 

 reports have come in from all parts of 

 the|Province that few have nested in 

 any locality. In reply as to the cause 

 of this state of affairs, authorities on the 

 subject are unanimous in the opinion 

 that the bluebird has been driven out by 

 the English sparrow. This spring I saw- 

 sparrows forcibly evicting barn swallows 

 and pewees which had built their nests" 

 under eaves. Nor are any of our small 

 birds exempt from their attacks. Prof. ■ 

 A. J. Cook in his admirable work on 

 "The Birds of Michigan," asserts that 

 even "The V.\ngh\rd{Tyranniis tyranniis) 

 is one of the victims of the English 

 sparrow." 



The English or European sparrow 

 {passer domestiais) was introduced into 

 New York in 1850 and since that time 

 they have increased so rapidly that now 

 probably not a single village or town 

 could be found in the whole of North 

 America that has not its hundreds and 



even thousands of them. The sparrow 

 does not raise one or two broods a year 

 as do our native species, but breed con- 

 tinuously throughout the season, and 

 either eggs or young birds may be found 

 in the nest any time from May till Sep- 

 tember. Some American ornithologists 

 affirm that they have known one pair to 

 raise as many as 30 young in a season. 

 The food of the sparrow consists almost 

 entirely of grain, which in cities is picked 

 from the droppings of horses. Of late 

 years, however, they have pushed into 

 the country where they have made 

 themselves notorious by nipping off the 

 early fruit buds. 



To ornithologists the sparrow is a 

 peculiar enigma. In England the Rev. 

 F. O. Morris, one of the best au- 

 thorities on birds in Europe, classes him 

 as a useful bird, and English farmers 

 protect him for his insectivorous habits. 

 Nor is he pugnacious there, for the little 

 English robin an even smaller bird will 

 put him to flight. It was in considera- 

 tion of these useful qualities that the 

 sparrow was introduced into America. 

 But here his habits have proved to be 

 just the reverse of useful, and American 

 ornithologists are unanimous in con- 

 demning him for driving out native birds. 

 No one seems to be able to offer any 

 explanation of this change of habits in 

 sparrows. The only thing approximat- 

 ing an explanation is that given by Mr. 

 Darwin in his " Origin of Species," 

 where he gives several analogous cases 

 of imported species supplanting native 

 ones. 



However, the fact remains, that our 

 native birds are becoming scarce, and 

 that the English sparrow is the cause of 

 the scarcity. What are our farmers and 

 fruit growers going to do about it? 

 In many of the States of the Union a 



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