726 CHARLES PAUL ALEXANDER 



In Europe the raven and the starling are important, as already stated. 

 Patterson (1908) records the starling as eating great numbers of Tipula 

 oleracea and as boring into the soil in search of the larvae of this 

 species. 



It will be noted that in the foregoing list no species of doves or pigeons 

 are recorded in this country as feeding on Tipulidae. The following note 

 on an Australian pigeon shows the importance of the larvae as a food for 

 these birds: 4 



Mr. North exhibited the head, crop, and gizzard of a wonga-wonga pigeon (Leucosarcia 

 picata Lath.) shot by Mr. H. J. McCooey in a myrtle scrub at Upper Burragorang on the 

 21st inst. The crop is absolutely crammed with dipterous larvae (Habromastix cinerascens 

 Sk.) and undigested portions of them mixed with seeds, berries, and earth appear also in the 

 , gizzard. As the larvae are known to be destructive to grass, the wonga-wonga would appear 

 to be deserving of consideration. 



Amphibia. Crane-flies, both larvae and adults, form a considerable 

 element of the food of many Amphibia. The studies by Needham 

 (1905 : 13) show this to be true in the case of the bullfrog, Rana cates- 

 beiana Shaw. Munz (1920) studied the food habits of eight species of 

 Anura and found that five fed on crane-fly larvae or adults. These 

 species were Rana damitans Latr., R, sylvatica Lee., R. palustris Lee., 

 R. pipiens Schreb., and Hyla crucifer Wied. The following additional 

 records are given: 



Desmognathus fusca Raf. Dusky salamander. Wings of a Limnophila found in a speci- 

 men from Ithaca, New York. (A. A. Noyes.) 



Rana damitans Latr. Green frog. Two larvae of a Tipula, near dejecta Walker, found 

 in stomach. (S. W. Frost.) 



Bufo lentiginosus woodhousei Girard. Centerville, Utah, April 27, 1912. Twenty-six 

 per cent of the food of this species consisted of a large tipulid. (E. R. Kalmbach.) 



Bufo sp. Washington, D. C., May 17, 1890. One per cent tipulid larvae. (W. L. 

 McAtee.) 



Pisces. The larvae of crane-flies furnish favorite morsels for many 

 carnivorous species of fish, and as a consequence they are in considerable 

 demand with fishermen as bait for bass and other game fish. These 

 include the larvae of the larger species of Eriocera and many large semi- 

 aquatic species of Tipula, especially Tipula caloptera and T. abdominalis. 

 Fragments of the adult flies are often found in the stomach contents of 

 fish, notably species of trout, most of these pieces being of individuals that 



4 Linn. Soc. New South Wales. Proc., ser. 2:g:585. 1894. 



