eaten by poultry in quantity with impunity, in as much as 

 robins are known to be able to eat them. 



"Robbins . . . seem to feed only on the smaller larvae. 

 The spines of the large larvas are capable of producing much 

 greater urticating effect and are possibly disagreeable to the 

 birds on that account Ent. Bull. No. 85, part V, p. 93). Of 

 course poultry and other birds are expected, and as a matter of 

 fact are, under usual conditions, compelled to eat of these and 

 similar caterpillars only as a part of mixed diet. 



The period when the insect is from an inch to two and a 

 half inches long is only about six weeks, when it changes to 

 pupa, usually congregating in clusters among the stems of 

 grasses, in which stage it is known to be greedily eaten by 

 skunks. Why not then also by poultry? And these pupae 

 change to moths that hang during day time in plain view on 

 stems of grasses, simply waiting to be picked off by poultry. 

 These moths, I had pointed out in my Circular No. 146, taken 

 in great quantities alone, might be also injurious because of 

 their hairy covering, but taken with plenty of seeds and, grit, 

 as would be the case on the range, it is most likely poultry 

 will find them beneficial eating. 



The Bureau of Entomology, instead of aiming to live up to 

 its purpose of promoting entomological knowledge in the 

 broadest sense, did not want to meet the various pending is- 

 sues, but finally, in 1317, told Hon. John E. Raker, member of 

 Congress from California, who aimed to get at the true facts, 

 that my "plan of control consists in that turkeys be secured in 

 sufficient numbers to destroy the insect. It has been shown, 



17 



