540 Tr A. \S ACTION'S OF THE AMERICAN INSTITUTE. 



the Leak is. He had fed to repletion on a species of redivious insect, 

 like the squash or pumpkin bug. In all examinations of the 

 stomachs of larks, I have found insects only, and nearly always but 

 one kind of an insect at a time. In the early spring they will feed 

 upon iules, a species of centipede, found about the roots of grapes. 

 In the summer you will find beetles. This bird appears to have an 

 instinct by which it knows wliere to find its insect food by the 

 appearance of the vegetation, and its beak is formed for such a pur- 

 pose. If shot when feeding it will be found coated with mud. 

 This bird is found insectivorous, except when the ground is covered 

 with snow ; it will then, from necessity, visit your barns or stacks for 

 seeds and grain. And now, please, let your imaginations carry you 

 back to the country in June, on the old farm near the meadows. 

 Tou see these superb tints glistening in the sunbeams. You hear 

 that glorious burst of melody, and the sense of happiness thrills aU 

 through you. God knew how to make a world and to call it good 

 when it was made. He made the meadow lark. He painted it 

 He made its beak to penetrate the earth, there to catch the insects 

 sapping the roots of our plants. He fashioned the organs to produce 

 that wonderful melody. Meadow lark are sold in your markets for 

 ten cents a piece. Here is a robin; bushels and bushels of robins 

 are in your market for one dollar a dozen. How would any of you 

 feel if some vagabond boy should shoot your robin, the red breast 

 that greets you morning and evening from the top of your highest 

 tree in the garden ? This larger bird is the largest of the woodpecker 

 family in this part of the country. It is commonly called a flicker, 

 sometimes high-holder, because it makes a hole for its nest high up in 

 a tree. The stomach of the bird contained a red berry, like a cran- 

 berry, the seeds of dogwood ben-ies, and nearly a thousand small 

 ants. From former examinations of this bird, I should judge that 

 ants are its chief food. I once counted 800, mostly in the larvge con- 

 dition, taken at one meal. The flesh of the bird is hard and the 

 smell rank, not fit for food, still it is often in the market. Here 

 are the heads of three cat birds. Every one knows this bird. It is 

 everywhere in the country, and often fi*equents our larger gardens in 

 the city. It is a mocking bird, and very nearly allied to the one 

 kept as a pet. Like your pet mocking bird, it will eat a great 

 variety of food ; these had been feeding upon berries, one had eaten 

 purple ones from a species of dogwood, until the stomach was purple 

 through and through. In summer, when feeding its young, the cat 



