110 



REPORT OF THE FISH AND GAME COMMISSION. 



outstanding feature of the diet of the birds examined was the pre- 

 ponderance of one kind of vegetable food — the fruit and seeds of the 

 sourberry, RJius integrifolia. Large numbers of cicadas and several 

 scorpions had been eaten by the birds. The roadrunner's relation- 

 ship to the cuckoos is emphasized by its fondness for hairy caterpillars, 

 many of which had been eaten. The lack of evidence as to the road- 

 runner's attacks on valley quail, plus the benefits conferred by it in 



Fig. 66. Stomach contents of roadrunner, showing remains of an Anthony towhee, a scorpion 

 and parts of several cicadas. Photograph by T. I. Storer. 



the destruction of insect and rodent pests, plus its esthetic value, 

 leave a balance distinctly in favor of the bird and make it a bene- 

 ficial rather than an injurious species. 



A study is being made of the food of ducks in this state, with a 

 view to the increase of the available food supply by artificial plantings 

 and the furnishing of a means of attracting waterfowl. A large num- 

 ber of duck stomachs is at hand and many of these have already been 

 examined and the contents of each recorded. 



A study is also being made of attempts to acclimatize foreign game 

 birds in California, with a view of discovering the reasons for success 

 and failure, and of what may be expected from future trials. After 

 a review of the history of the introduction of exotic species, it is 

 quite evident that the results have not been proportionate to the 



