The Flycatchers 351 



on the crown attracts insects ? Did you ever see a king- 

 bird eat anything besides insects ? 



The Arkansas kingbird. The Arkansas kingbird is 

 generally distributed in the western half of the United 

 States. Like the other members of the flycatcher 

 family, it does much good and scarcely any harm. An 

 examination of sixty-two stomachs showed that insects 

 composed most of the food. Honeybees were found in 

 only four stomachs. Of the thirty bees found, all but 

 one was a drone. As the worker bees kill the drones, 

 the kingbirds may be said to assist them. 



The phoebe. The phcebe or pewee is ij inches 

 shorter than the kingbird, having a length of 7 inches. 

 Its upper parts are grayish brown, its under parts nearly 

 white. It is best recognized by the constant dropping 

 and flirting of the tail. 



The phoebe has no song, but utters a monotonous 

 see-hee or see-bee. It nests under bridges or on ledges 

 of rock or in buildings, especially those near the water, 

 and is usually to be seen in the vicinity of its nest. 

 One pair started six or seven nests on the rafters under 

 a shed roof. They finally 

 finished one, leaving some of 

 the others almost finished, 

 some just started. They 

 catch gnats, mosquitoes, flies, 

 cucumber beetles, cotton-boll 

 weevils, and other injurious 

 insects. 



The wood pewee. The ~u. s. Dept. of Agriculture 



WOOd pewee is Still Smaller FIG. 216. Phcebe or pewee. 



