150 SA-ST>-E.n.&oti, Food of Niitkaiclies and C/iickadees. pA^ril 



seem to be but little doubt that the Nuthatch, both from its food 

 and habits, is either absolutely neutral or of comparatively small 

 economic importance. 



Black-capped Chickadee. {Farus atricapillus Linn.) . 



Twenty-eight stomachs were secured ; the first nineteen during 

 the winter, and the last nine in the spring, being the same periods 

 in which the Nuthatches were collected. The contents were tab- 

 ulated as for the Nuthatches. 



Vegetable Food. 



During the winter 39.3 per cent of the food was vegetable, though 

 one-third of the stomachs contained no seeds whatever, while in 

 the spring the food was wholly insect. The seeds identified were 

 one Avena sativa^ and one Ambrosia arte7nesiafolia., being practi- 

 cally the same as those upon which the Nuthatch fed. 



Difference in Food as Affected by Season. 



The same increase of insect food in the spring over that in the 

 winter is seen as for the Nuthatch. During the winter 70.7 per cent 

 of the food was animal, while in the spring no vegetable matter 

 whatever was eaten. No trace of gravel was found in any of the 

 stomachs. This is doubtless due to the small amount of vegeta- 

 ble food eaten, removing the necessity of a large amount of grind- 

 ing to bring the food into a digestible condition. The total 

 amount of food also remained nearly constant, being .48 c.c. in 

 the winter and .53 c.c. in the spring. Even more markedly than 

 in the Nuthatches, it is seen that in the spring far more adults, in 

 comparison with the number of eggs and larvae, were eaten than 

 in winter. Whereas in the winter about ^-3 of the insect forms 

 were adult, -^^ larvae, and -^^ eggs ; in the spring, f were adult, J^ 

 larvae, and \ eggs. While the total bulk of the food in the spring 

 ■was yL larger than that of the winter, yet there were over sixty 

 times more forms eaten in the winter than in the spring, which 

 was largely due to the enormous number of Reduviid eggs then 



