BIRDS IN RELATION TO THE ALFALFA WEEVIL. 21 



In April, 27 of these birds were collected, and the weevil, which 

 was found to comprise one-sixth of their food, was present in all but 

 seven. The insects taken were adults, and the average was 14.4 

 weevils per bird. One bird had taken 75 of these insects, another 60, 

 and three others 51, 48, and 33, respectively. 



Other animal food is important, as the largest single item was 

 caterpillars, amounting to nearly 22 per cent. These insects were 

 present in all but 6 of the 27 stomachs, and in several instances formed 

 a considerable proportion of the food. In one 15 caterpillars formed 

 three- fourths and in another an equal number composed about two- 

 thirds of the stomach contents. Ground beetles, many of which were 

 of the genus Amara, amounted to about one-eighth of the food. 

 Hymenoptera, largely parasitic ichneumons, were eaten to the extent 

 of 6.5 per cent, while weevils other than Phytonomus, scarabaeid 

 beetles, Hemiptera, and Diptera formed about 2 per cent each. Of 

 the vegetable food (27.26 per cent) a considerable portion (15.89 per 

 cent) was grain, while the remainder was weed seeds and a little 

 rubbish. 



During May an increased consumption of caterpillars appears to 

 explain a decrease in the percentage of weevils. The larvae, eaten 

 on an average of 3.83 per bird, and adults at the rate of 7.58, totaled 

 nearly 11 per cent of the bird's food. A male taken in May had de- 

 stroyed the largest number of adults, 81 of the insects comprising 92 

 per cent of the stomach contents. Another had made away with 

 over 70 larvae and 32 adults, while a third ate 40 larvae and 10 adults. 



Caterpillars amounted to nearly a third of the month's food (31.66 

 per cent), occurring in all but seven of the stomachs collected, and 

 frequently composing the major portion of the food. In one case a 

 bird had destroyed at least 20 of these insects and in two others 16 and 

 15, respectively, were eaten. Ground beetles were found in all but 2 

 of the 29 stomachs and amounted to over a quarter of the food. In 

 two cases over 20 of these beetles were found in the stomach. Among 

 them were several of the genus Calosoma, doubtless beneficial, but 

 on the other hand there were large numbers of several species of the 

 genus Amara, which are injurious to vegetation. Orthoptera (grass- 

 hoppers and crickets) composed 6.83 per cent, Hemiptera and scara- 

 baeid beetles about 3 per cent each, and several other insects were 

 present in small quantities. The vegetable element was materially 

 less than in May, being only a little over 9 per cent, and about two- 

 thirds of it was grain. 



In June the meadowlark maintains about the same relation to the 

 weevil as during the preceding month. There is, however, an in- 

 crease in the proportion of larvae eaten. Examination of 14 stomachs 

 revealed an average of 4.78 adults and 11.93 larvae per bird, which 

 amounted to nearly an eighth of the food. One bird worthy of men- 



