684 



AMERICAN FORESTRY 



them, and they sometimes take large 

 numbers. About 600 of these large 

 ants have been found in the stomach of 

 single individuals of the red-shafted 

 flicker and the pileated woodpecker, 

 and about 1,000 in the stomach of a 

 nighthawk. Woodpeckers are excep- 

 tionally fond of ants, certain species of 

 this family in the United States making 



The Blue Jay 



this bird not only eats tree insects but plays a very useful role as 

 a tree planter by distributing quantities of tree seeds. jays 

 include in their insect menu the larvae of the destructive gypsy 

 moth and the eggs of the browntaii. moth and the tent caterpillar 



as high as 85 per cent of their food of 

 ants and the whole group averaging 

 nearly 30 per cent. 



Various caterpillars must be ranked 

 among the greatest pests of our trees. 

 It requires no more than mention of a 

 few species such as the tent caterpillar, 

 the gypsy moth and the browntail to 

 emphasize this fact. Inspite of the 



expenditure, of enormous sums of money 

 annually in combating these insects, 

 they remain pests of the first rank, and 

 cause damage that can be reckoned only 

 in millions of dollars. 



Their natural enemies consequently 

 are of great interest, and among them 

 birds are by no means least. No fewer 

 than forty-six kinds of birds are known 

 to feed upon the 

 gypsy moth, in some 

 of its stages, and 

 thirty-one upon the 

 brown-tail. Forty- 

 three birds are num- 

 bered among the en- 

 emies of the orchard 

 tent-caterpillar and 

 thirty-two for the for- 

 est tent-caterpillar. In 

 some cases the birds 

 have been conspicu- 

 ously successful in des- 

 troying these pests. 

 Mr. E. H. Forbush, 

 State Ornithologist of 

 Massachusetts, says : 

 "Instances were re- 

 corded during the first 

 state campaign against 

 the gypsy moth, from 

 1890 to 1895, where 

 small isolated moth 

 colonies appeared to 

 have been suppressed 

 and even annihilated 

 by birds. A serious 

 outbreak was dis- 

 covered in George- 

 town, Mass., in 1899. 

 It had been in exis- 

 tence for a long time, 

 but its spread had 

 evidently been limited 

 by the great number 

 of birds that were feed- 

 ing there on all forms 

 of the moth. Several 

 months later the state abandoned 

 the work against the moth, and little 

 hope was entertained that anything 

 more than a severe check had been 

 given the insect in Georgetown. Never- 

 theless, in the six years that have since 

 elapsed comparatively few moths have 

 been found in that locality. The most 

 feasible explanation seems to be that 



