FOOD OF WEST VIRGIXIA BIRDS 49 



this Blackbird's food is made up of snout beetles or weevils. The Rusty 

 Blackbird is another species that needs only to be mentioned. This 

 species 4s from the north and passes through the State on its migration 

 journeys. At times I have seen these small Blackbirds in considerable 

 numbers. Like the other smaller species of this family they feed largely 

 on \\eed seeds. The two remaining species in the group, the Bronzed 

 Crackle and Purple Crackle, are often called indiscriminately "Crow 

 Blackbird." These two forms of the same species are found throughout 

 the State, the Purple Crackle ease of the mountains and its subspecies, 

 the i^ionzed Crackle, ^est of the mountains. To the untrained eye the 

 two forms seem to be exactly alike and, so fur as their habits and general 

 appearances go, they are practically identical. These are our largest 

 Llackbiids and their economic relationships are of importance. At 

 times they appear in immense flocks of many thousands of birds. Prof, 

 ueal says, ''It is evident that a bird so large and so abundant may exer- 

 cise an important influence upon the agricultural \\elfaie cf the country 

 it inhabits." During the past summer I have seen the Bronzed Crackles 

 feeding upon wild mulberries, black berries, wild black cherries and the 

 fruit of the flowering dogwcod. I have observed them feeding also upon 

 beechnuts and several kinds of acorns. Sometimes they alight in the 

 top cf tail white oak trees and eat gieat quantities of the ripening acoins. 

 Grain constitutes neaily half of the entire amount of food eaten through- 

 out the year. Much cf this that is taken in the winter is, of course, 

 waste grain, but that taken in summer is from the fields where these 

 birds alight in large flocks and sometimes do great damage. The food 

 of this species is made up of many things grain, weed seeds, wild fruit 

 a very little cultivated fruit, grub worms and other harmful insects, 

 snails, crayfish, salamanders, birds' eggs, young birds, mice, small snakes, 

 fish and almost anything else that any bird will eat. The Bronzed 

 Crackle and Purple Crackle are decidedly omnivorous. While they do 

 some harm in the destruction of grain and a few birds' eggs, they do 

 great good in the destrucution of many harmful insects. I believe these 

 Blackbirds should be protected. 



Bobolink. 



The Bobolink should be mentioned because' of its beauty of plumage, 

 its exquisite song and its great reputation along various lines, though 

 this species is quite rare in West Virginia. I have observed Bobolinks 

 in a dozen or more sections of the State, seeing them usually about the 

 first week in May. Mr. I. R. Tannehill says that "The Bobolink re- 

 mained in the fields about Alderson until well into the summer, I believe 

 about the 10th of June (1913.)" Large flocks have been observed in the 

 eastern part of the State during the fall migration. So rare is this 

 noted species in our part of the country that it need not be discussed 

 from the standpoint of its food. 



Meadowlark. 

 As we walk through the fields we occasionally flush from the ground 



