4A MANAGEMENT OF PHEASANTS IN PRESERVES. 
February to the middle of March, in a corn-growing district, while the spring 
corn is sowing, the rook hurries over the new-sown land, and picks up all stray 
grains that comes under his observation, as well as worms, grubs, slugs, bits of 
potatoes, pieces of half-decayed scales of oyster shells, little pieces of lime, sand, and 
eravel—all together hoarded under the lower mandible, which looks like a big full 
pouch as he arrives home to his mate in charge of the nest. Here his load is 
delivered to the mate, who, with great ado, chews it over, and ejects the pellet or 
quid in due course. This business is continued till late at night. Many times, 
passing under the trees at various hours, from ten p.m. till three a.m., I have 
heard the pellet drop, and have had them fall on my head and shoulders, and 
picked them up by the light of the moon or lantern. ‘The rook’s excreta are at 
this time pretty solid. As the month of March is nearly ended this alters; and in 
April, when the corn is sprouted and growing, the ejecta are like sloppy mud, 
and contain the husks of a few grains of corn, wings of beetles, pieces of snail 
shells, lime, and grit. From this time till June no pellets or quids are. to be 
seen; the droppings are loose, and like whitewash over the vegetation underneath. 
Insect food gets so various and abundant that they and their broods seem to 
entirely subsist on it for six or eight weeks, and the young thrive and grow fat 
wonderfully quick in showery, growing weather of April and beginning of May. 
The young that are spared from the gunners, as soon as they can fly, are enticed 
away early in the morning by their parents, at first by short flights, to the fields 
then preparing for turnip sowing, or the pasture that produces cockchafers, fern 
beetles, and other insects, and for a few nights roost on trees near their work. 
After they get strong on the wing, and good flyers, they all come back to their 
native home, the rookery. As soon as a field of early podded peas is pretty full, 
the rook, if not looked after, will take toll; also of wheat or barley they will 
certainly, if an opportunity is afforded them, filch a portion, particularly such as is 
near trees or has been laid by wind or wet. ‘Then, again, commences the real 
pellet-ejecting season. The rook then hurries to the unguarded field to filch corn, 
which he stores in his pouch as quickly as possible, picking up also on the pasture 
and turnip fields, &c., quantities of grubs, snails, slugs, beetles, earwigs, grass- 
hoppers, crickets, fern flies, various other insects, and their larve. It is truly 
astonishing to see, as I have done for years, on examining those ejected pellets, 
what variety at times they contain—besides remains of every kind of creeping, 
running, or flying insect that may chance to come in their way, im the season of 
ripening of seeds on the pastures a number of grass and weed seeds, the husk of 
corn—wheat and barley—many kinds of weed and coarse grass seeds. After harvest 
and gleaning season is over, no more pellets are to be seen. In the wheat-sowing 
season they filch some loose grains and dig out the young plants, and, through its 
being wet at this season, and collected with much dirt, the food is ejected in a loose 
