1914] Bryant: Economic Status of tlie Western Mcadowlark 451 



Yet if enough grasshoppers and ground-beetles are available, the 

 birds evidently take these in preference, for stomachs are more 

 often found filled with insects than with weed seeds. The 

 accompanying diagrams illustrate the great change in food habits 

 from one time of year to another. It will be noted in each 

 instance that the food of the western meadowlark is made up 

 largely of insects during the spring and summer months and 

 largely of grain and weed seeds during the fall and winter 

 months. It is needless to point out that this parallels the avail- 

 ability of insect food, and to a less extent the availability of 

 vegetable food. In that the percentage of animal food for the 

 year is greater than the percentage of vegetable food, and since 

 some insect is nearly always found in stomachs filled with grain 



Vegcldble load 



Fig. C. — Diagram showing change of food habits of the western mead- 

 owlark from month to month. Note that the maximum consumption of 

 animal food is to be found in May, June, and July, and the minimum, 

 corresponding with the maximum of vegetable food, in January and 

 February. Computed from the results of stomach examinations of an 

 average of twelve birds taken each month of the year at Red Bluff, 

 Tehama County, California. 



and weed seeds, whereas grain and weed seeds are far less often 

 found in stomachs filled with insects, it seems safe to say that 

 animal food is preferred and vegetable food is used as a make- 

 shift. 



The diagram showing the food of western meadowlarks col- 

 lected in the vicinity of Ked Bluff (fig. C) illustrates this pref- 

 erence for insects. Ninety per cent of the birds examined were 



