ON TREES AND BIRDS. 151 



during all the months in which the bird remains in this 

 country. The fewest are eaten in July, when a little 

 fruit is also taken. The other insects consist of beetles, 

 bugs, ants, wasps, grasshoppers, and some spiders. 

 The beetles are principally click beetles, the larvae of 

 which are among the most destructive insects known ; 

 and the bugs include plant and bark lice, both very 

 harmful, but so small and obscure as to be passed over 

 unnoticed by most birds. 



THE BULLOCK ORIOLE. 



The Bullock oriole is the western representative of 

 the Baltimore oriole, taking the place of that species 

 throughout the Pacific coast region. It does not differ 

 essentially in its habits of nesting or in its food from 

 its eastern relative, but it is less beautiful in plumage. 

 The examination of 70 stomachs shows that 75 per 

 cent of its food consists of insects, mostly of a noxious 

 character. Caterpillars constitute 26 per cent of the 

 food, the rest being made up of wasps, grasshoppers, 

 bugs (Hemiptera), and a few beetles. Among the 

 Hemiptera, perhaps the most interesting is the black 

 olive scale, which was found in 17 stomachs and con- 

 stituted nearly 7 per cent of the whole food. It is not 

 surprising that these small creatures are eaten by small 

 birds like the titmice, but they must have some very 

 agreeable properties as food in order to attract birds 

 like the oriole. With such a good record as an insect 

 eater one can well afford to spare it a few cherries. 



