BREWER'S BLACKBIRD (Euphagus 

 cyanocephalus). 



Length, 10 incties. Its glosay purplish head 

 distinguishes it from other blackbirds that do 

 not show in flight a trough-shaped tail. 



Range: Breeds in the West, east to Texas, 

 Kansas, and Minnesota, and north to southern 

 Canada; winters over most of the United 

 States breeding range, south to Guatemala. 



Habits and economic status: Very numerous 

 in the West and in fall gathers in immense 

 flocks, especially about barnyards and corrals. 

 During the cherry season in California Brewer's 

 blackbird is much in the orchards. In one case 

 they were seen to eat freely of cherries, but 

 when a neighboring fruit raiser began to plow 

 his orchard almost every blackbird in the vi- 

 cinity was upon the newly opened ground and 

 close at the plowman's heels in its eagerness 

 to get the insects exposed by the plow. Cater- 

 pillars and pupae form the largest item of animal food (about 12 per cent). Many 

 of these are cutworms, and cotton bollworms or com earworms were found in 10 

 stomachs and codling-moth pupae in 11. Beetles constitute over 11 per cent of 

 the food. The vegetable food is practically contained in three items — grain, 

 fruit, and weed seeds. Grain, mostly oats, amounts to 54 per cent; fruit, largely 

 cherries, 4 per cent; and weed seeds, not quite 9 per cent. The grain is prob- 

 ably mostly wild, volunteer, or waste, so that the bird does most damage by 

 eating fruit. (See Biol. Surv. Bui. 34, pp. 69-65.) 



BULLOCK'S ORIOLE (Icterus buUocki). 



Length, about 8 inches. Our only oriole with top of head and throat black 

 and cheeks orange. 



Range: Breeds from South Dakota, Nebraska, and Kansas to the Pacific 

 Ocean and from southern Canada to northern Mexico; winters in Mexico. 



Habits and economic status: In the West this bird takes the place occupied 

 in the East by the Baltirnore oriole. In food, nesting habits, and song the birds 

 are similar. Both are migratory and remain on their summer range only some 

 five or six months. They take kindly to orchards, gardens, and the vicinity of 



farm buildings and often live in villages and city 

 parks. Their diet is largely made up of insects 

 that infest orchards and gardens. When fruit 

 trees are in bloom they are constantly busy 

 among the blossoms and save many of them from 

 destruction. In the food of Bullock's oriole 

 beetles amount to 35 per cent and nearly all 

 are harmful. Many of these are weevils, some 

 of which live upon acorns and other nuts. 

 Ants and wasps amount to 15 per cent of the 

 diet. The black olive scale was found in 45 

 of the 162 stomachs examined. Caterpillars, 

 with a few moths and pupae, are the largest 

 item of food and amount to over 41 per cent. 

 Among these were codling-moth larvse. The 

 vegetable food is practically all fruit (19 per 

 cent) and in cherry season consists largely of 

 that fruit. Eating small fruits is the bird's 

 worst trait, but it will do harm in this way 

 only when very numerous. (See Biol. Surv. 

 Bui. 34, pp. 68-71.) 



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