930 ELEMEMS OF AGRICULTURE 



animation of the stomachs of three species — the sdng 

 sparrow, the chipping sparrow and the field sparrow- 

 shows that about one-third of the food consists of in- 

 sects, comprising many injurious beetles, such as snout^ 

 beetles or weevils, and leaf-beetles/'* 



Besides the sparrow there are a number of other 

 kinds of birds noted as seed-destroyers. The goldfinch, 

 or wild canary, is very useful in this respect. Redbirds, 

 horned larks, -and blackbirds are also seed-eaters. The 

 blackbirds with which we of the southeastern States 

 are most familiar are the crow blackbird, or grackle, 

 and the red-winged blackbird. Both of these birds are 

 accused of stealing grain from cultivated fields, and it 

 is very probable that, they do some damage in this way ; 

 but, on the other hand, they eat quantities of weed-seed 

 and also many insects. 



Besides the birds already mentioned, there are several 

 so-called game birds that are seed-eaters. The quail, 

 or bobwhite, lives largely on the seed of weeds, and does 

 no harm to grain fields. The mourning dove is another 

 bird that eats great quantities of weed-seed. 



Dr. Sylvester Judd, of the United States Department 

 of Agriculture, says of seed-eating birds: " Ko less than 

 fifty different birds 'act as weed-destroyers, and the 

 noxious plants which they help to eradicate number 

 more than threescore species." f 



217. Birds and Cultivated Crops. — On the other hand, 

 it is undoubtedly true that some birds do damage to 

 both grain crops and fruit crops. The crow and the 



*U. S. Dept. Agr. Farmers' Bulletin No. 54. 

 +Yearbook U. S. Dept. Agr, 1898, p. 282. 



