37 



Birds feeding on the May Beetle or its Larva, the White Qrub (Genus 



Lachnosterna) . 



As tin' white grubs live in t ho ground they probably are not eaten by 

 many birds except such as, like the robin and blackbird, follow the 

 plough. It is this grub that cats the grass roots in lawns and fields, 

 thereby destroying the turf, sometimes in great patches. Crows, robins 

 and blackbirds know where to find these larvae and how to unearth them. 

 The mature insect, or May beetle, feeds on the foliage of the trees and 

 flies in the night. It is then captured on the wing by owls and whip- 

 poorwills. Hawks also find them occasionally and the omnivorous 

 crows and jays destroy many more. 



Flicker, 

 Blue jay, 

 Crow, 

 Sparrow hawk, 



Kingbird, 



Red-winged blackbird, 



Bronzed grackle or crow blackbird j 



Robin. 



Birds feeding on Plant Lice (Aphidaa). 



Most of the following birds feed largely on the aphids which infest 

 the gray birch and other forest trees. Most warblers and the indigo 

 bird are particularly active in this respect. The chickadee and the red- 

 start are also among the most useful species. The swifts and smaller 

 flycatchers catch many of the flying imagoes. No doubt this is also 

 true of the swallows, although we have not yet observed swallows feed- 

 ing on these insects. Probably most of the smaller birds feed upon 

 aphids when they are plentiful, but it is not likely that the larger species 

 often seek out such minute insects. The woodpeckers, which eat ants, 

 especially the flicker and downy woodpecker, also eat aphids. 



Downy woodpecker, 



Flicker, 



Chimney swift, 



Ruby-throated humming bird, 



Wood pewee, 



Least flycatcher, 



Purple finch, 



Red-winged blackbird, 



Baltimore oriole, 



American goldfinch, 



Chipping sparrow, 



Field sparrow, 



Bobolink, 



Towhee, 



Rose- breasted grosbeak, 



Indigo bunting, 



Chickadee, 



Scarlet tanager, 

 Red-eyed vireo, 

 Yellow-throated vireo, 

 Black-and-white warbler, 

 Myrtle warbler, 

 Parula warbler, 

 Yellow warbler, 

 Black-throated blue warbler, 

 Magnolia warbler, 

 Chestnut-sided warbler, 

 Maryland yellow-throat, 

 Black-throated green warbler, 

 Oven bird, 

 American redstart, 

 Catbird, 



White-breasted nuthatch, 

 American robin. 



A glance over the list of birds given above as feeding on the different 

 species of caterpillars will show that some of the birds which are be- 

 lieved by many people to be harmful occur in all these lists. The crow 

 eats many caterpillars and more pupa;. The despised jay, which cer- 

 tainly may do much harm by destroying the eggs and young of smaller 

 birds, is one of the most valuable birds we have in some respects, being 

 a most persistent hunter of the caterpillars, chrysalids and eggs of some 

 of the most injurious moths. The oriole, which has a taste for fruit, is 

 a gourmand for caterpillars, and the robin and catbird, much decried by 



