THEIE PLACE IN NATURE 9 



months they become the prey of a host of preda- 

 ceous creatures. When the soil is frozen and the 

 field-mice are safely burrowed in their warm win- 

 ter nests, then goshawks, Cooper's hawks, sharp- 

 shinned hawks, horned owls, and others descend 

 upon the weaker members of the bird tribe. An 

 occasional rabbit is added to their menu, but game- 

 and song-birds are their choicest morsels. They 

 take a fair toll in the spring and summer months, 

 but alleviate it somewhat with mice and other 

 small rodents. 



Hawks and owls are not the only creatures that 

 prey upon the less ferocious species. Keeping 

 them company are the "vermin," individually 

 known are weasels, skunks, lizards, snakes, and 

 the like. A fox seeks out a bird as it would the 

 daintiest titbit. Cats of the tabby variety, which 

 have long forgotten the meaning of a home hearth, 

 utilize them as a staple article of diet. Lizards 

 wax fat on their eggs, as do snakes of many 

 varieties. 



Nor are "vermin" and a few species of hawks 

 and owls the only animal enemies of bird kind. 

 To a certain extent the birds war upon themselves. 

 Crows and jays rob a nest of its eggs or young 

 as much to satisfy their marauding instincts as- 

 for food, and they are not averse to raiding the 

 home of one of their own species: they do con- 

 siderable damage. Where there are large colo- 

 nies of breeding cormorants and other sea-birds,. 



