THE ENGLISH SPARROW AS A PEST. 



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Sparrow traps may be classified, according to their nature, as nest- 

 box traps and bait traps. Inasmuch as sparrows usually feed in 

 flocks, but approach nest boxes only singly or in pairs, the annual 

 catch of a bait trap will exceed that of a nest-box trap many fold. 

 During the breeding season, however, nest-box traps are decidedly 

 useful. 



NEST-BOX TRAPS. 



A nest-box trap, as its name implies, looks like an ordinary nest 

 box. The weight of a bird entering such a trap puts into operation 

 a mechanism w r hich catches the bird and sets the trap for another. 

 There are a number of devices to accomplish this. In designing a 

 nest -box trap one should bear in mind that English sparrows, like 

 other birds, dislike drafty quarters, and 

 that a mechanism delicate enough to be 

 operated by a sparrow's weight is likely 

 to get out of order unless the parts are 

 few and well protected from the weather. 



Tesch trap. Probably the simplest 

 nest -box trap yet designed is the one 

 illustrated by figure 5. The trap de- 

 scribed below is a modification of the 

 one invented by Mr. Charles H. Tesch, 

 of Milwaukee, Wis., who furnished plans 

 of his trap and kindly placed at our dis- 

 posal the results of his experiments. 

 With his trap Mr. Tesch caught spar- 

 rows bent on finding a home as fast as 

 they came along. The essential parts of 

 the trap are: (1) A box, (2) a tipping 

 chamber within the box, (3) a down 

 spout below it, and (4) a bag at the 

 lower end of the down spout. The di- 

 mensions of the several parts are given 

 in figure 6. The tipping chamber is made of tin, the down spout 

 of wood or tin, the box of wood. The roof board is cleated across 

 the ends, and also lengthwise between the cross cleats, for the at- 

 tachment of the sides, as shown in the right-hand drawing, figure 

 6. The close weave of a 2-bushel bag makes it suitable for the lower 

 end of the down spout. One of coarser fabric would allow a draft 

 through the spout and thus detract from the efficiency of the trap. 

 In building this trap the front wall is the last piece to go in place. 

 It is fastened there by screws, so the trap can easily be overhauled. 

 It is a good plan to fasten with shellac a few feathers or bits of hay 



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PIG. 5. Tesch nest-box trap. 



