28 ANIMAL LIFE IN AFRICA 



important fact to bear in mind is that all hawks and 

 owls feed largely on noxious rodents and larger insects, 

 such as grasshoppers, crickets, and beetles, and from 

 their size and voracious appetites are important factors 

 in reducing the numbers ot these pests, and keeping 

 them under control. 



" There is a number of species of birds and mammals, 

 which although they do not strictly belong to the pre- 

 daceous groups, are nevertheless extensively predatory 

 in habit. Among the better known of these may be 

 mentioned rats, squirrels ravens, crows, jays, herons, 

 and gulls. With the exception of the house cat, the 

 rat probably kills more young chickens than any other 

 animal. In some places where this rodent has become 

 well entrenched owners have found it impossible profitably 

 to raise chickens. Rats have been known to kill newly 

 born lambs and pigs, and they frequently destroy the 

 young and eggs of wild birds. This is especially true 

 in suburban districts and on islands along the coast. 

 It is well known that members of the heron family 

 feed to a great extent on fish and on other forms of 

 aquatic life, and consequently do not live far from 

 water. 



" Two species, however, the great blue heron and the 

 bittern, depart at times from the family traits, and visit 

 hillsides, cultivated fields, and drier meadows in search 

 of ground squirrels and field mice which they greedily 

 devour. The herons, like other flesh-eating birds, 

 digest their food rapidly, and are disposed to gorge 

 themselves when opportunity offers. It is fair to assume 

 that at a low average, a pair of herons with four or five 

 young will consume a dozen or fifteen gophers daily. 

 The gulls and terns that live inland do effective service 

 by checking the inroads of injurious insects and mammals. 



