﻿Recently 
  published 
  Ornithological 
  Works. 
  579 
  

  

  its 
  beautiful 
  illustrations, 
  and 
  can 
  cordially 
  recommend 
  it 
  to 
  

   all 
  lovers 
  of 
  birds. 
  Dr. 
  Fisher 
  and 
  his 
  fellow-experts 
  have 
  

   examined 
  the 
  actual 
  contents 
  of 
  the 
  stomachs 
  of 
  about 
  2700 
  

   specimens 
  of 
  the 
  Diurnal 
  and 
  Nocturnal 
  Birds 
  of 
  Prey 
  of 
  

   the 
  United 
  States. 
  '' 
  The 
  result 
  proves 
  that 
  a 
  class 
  of 
  birds 
  

   commonly 
  looked 
  upon 
  as 
  enemies 
  to 
  the 
  farmer, 
  and 
  indis- 
  

   criminately 
  destroyed 
  whenever 
  occasion 
  offers, 
  really 
  rank 
  

   as 
  his 
  best 
  friends, 
  and, 
  with 
  few 
  exceptions, 
  should 
  be 
  pre- 
  

   served 
  and 
  encouraged 
  to 
  take 
  up 
  their 
  abode 
  in 
  the 
  neigh- 
  

   bourhood 
  of 
  his 
  home. 
  Only 
  six 
  of 
  the 
  73 
  species 
  of 
  Hawks 
  

   and 
  Owls 
  of 
  the 
  United 
  States 
  are 
  injurious, 
  and 
  of 
  these 
  

   three 
  are 
  so 
  extremely 
  rare 
  that 
  they 
  need 
  hardly 
  be 
  con- 
  

   sidered." 
  

  

  That 
  Owls 
  are 
  amongst 
  the 
  most 
  beneficial 
  of 
  birds 
  has 
  

   long 
  been 
  a 
  doctrine 
  taught 
  by 
  all 
  ornithologists, 
  though 
  its 
  

   truth 
  is 
  by 
  no 
  means 
  yet 
  allowed 
  by 
  English 
  gamekeepers. 
  

   Dr. 
  Fisher's 
  volume, 
  which 
  we 
  owe 
  to 
  the 
  energetic 
  action 
  

   of 
  our 
  friend 
  Dr. 
  C. 
  Hart 
  Merriam, 
  clearly 
  shows 
  that 
  the 
  

   majority 
  of 
  Hawks 
  belong 
  to 
  the 
  same 
  category. 
  Many 
  of 
  

   the 
  species, 
  in 
  the 
  United 
  States 
  at 
  least, 
  destroy 
  noxious 
  

   insects 
  in 
  enormous 
  quantities, 
  and 
  there 
  can 
  be 
  little 
  doubt 
  

   that 
  the 
  same 
  is 
  the 
  case 
  in 
  Europe. 
  In 
  the 
  western 
  prairies 
  

   flocks 
  of 
  Buzzards 
  {Buteo 
  sivainsoni) 
  congregate 
  wherever 
  

   grasshoppers 
  and 
  crickets 
  abound. 
  Dr. 
  Merriam 
  has 
  esti- 
  

   mated 
  " 
  that 
  at 
  least 
  200 
  grasshoppers 
  are 
  consumed 
  daily 
  by 
  

   one 
  Buzzard 
  ; 
  and, 
  in 
  the 
  course 
  of 
  a 
  month, 
  a 
  flock 
  of 
  about 
  

   165 
  individuals, 
  which 
  is 
  a 
  small 
  estimate 
  of 
  the 
  number 
  

   actually 
  seen 
  together 
  in 
  various 
  localities 
  feeding 
  upon 
  

   grasshoppers, 
  will 
  destroy 
  1,000,000 
  adult 
  insects 
  — 
  a 
  benefit 
  

   to 
  agriculture 
  which 
  no 
  farmer 
  can 
  fail 
  to 
  appreciate.'' 
  

  

  In 
  spite 
  of 
  these 
  and 
  other 
  similar 
  facts, 
  the 
  State 
  of 
  

   Colorado 
  some 
  years 
  since 
  " 
  passed 
  a 
  bounty-act 
  which 
  

   included 
  these 
  birds. 
  As 
  a 
  result, 
  thousands 
  of 
  grasshopper- 
  

   eating 
  Hawks 
  were 
  destroyed 
  at 
  the 
  expense 
  of 
  the 
  State 
  — 
  

   an 
  expense 
  by 
  no 
  means 
  to 
  be 
  estimated 
  by 
  the 
  number 
  of 
  

   dollars 
  paid 
  out 
  as 
  blood-money 
  ; 
  for 
  if 
  the 
  destruction 
  be 
  

   carried 
  far 
  enough, 
  and 
  the 
  birds 
  of 
  prey 
  actually 
  extermi- 
  

   nated, 
  there 
  is 
  every 
  reason 
  to 
  believe 
  that 
  sooner 
  or 
  later 
  

  

  2 
  s 
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