30 



BULLETIN 171, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 



31.50 per cent, or nearly one-third of the whole food. They made 

 up 64 per cent of the contents of the one stomach taken in October, 

 indicating that they are acceptable food when found. Other Hy- 

 menoptera (bees and wasps) amount to 3.80 per cent, a record fully 

 up to the average of thrushes in general. Like ants they were 

 taken rather irregularly and the maximum, 11.50 per cent, occurs in 

 July. Hemiptera (bugs) amount to only 3.89 per cent and are not 

 a very regular article of diet. In July they amount to 23.75 per 

 cent, which is more than the combined amount for all other months. 

 This record resulted from the fact that the contents of two stomachs 

 collected in that month consisted almost entirely of small cicadas. 

 Besides these, stinkbugs, negro bugs, assassin bugs, and jassids were 

 taken. Diptera (flies), almost conspicuous by their absence, were 

 found in the stomachs collected in April and September only, and 

 amount to only 0.92 per cent for the year. 



Lepidoptera (mostly caterpillars) are a rather regular article of 

 food, amounting to 14.45 per cent for the year and constituting a 

 large part of the food of every month in which stomachs were 

 collected. In April they amount to 22 per cent and in September, 

 in two stomachs taken, 48 per cent. It is probable, however, that 

 the maximum consumption occurs in the early summer months. 

 Orthoptera (grasshoppers, locusts, and crickets) are, next to beetles, 

 the largest item of the food. Very curiously January shows the 

 greatest consumption, 70.33 per cent ; August, the normal grasshopper 

 month, stands next with 53.86 per cent. The season seems to open in 

 January and holds out with a good percentage in every month until 

 it ends abruptly with 38.50 per cent in September. The average 

 for the year is 23 per cent. This is higher than the record of any 

 other thrush, though the other two bluebirds do not fall far behind. 

 A few of the rarer insects, some spiders, thousand-legs, and a tick 

 make up the rest of the animal food, 2.92 per cent. 



Following is a list showing the insects identified and the number 

 of stomachs in which found: 



COLEOPTERA. 



Amara interstitialis 

 Harpalus ellipsis 



1 



1 



Silpha opaca 1 



1 



1 



1 



1 



1 



1 



1 



1 



Hippodamia convergens. 



Hyncalypta sp 



Cardiophorus luridipes _ 



Onthophagus sp 



Aphodius flmetarius 



A phodius inquinatus 



Dichelonycha sp 



f'hrysomela lunata 



COLEOPTERA— Continued. 



Centrioptera miiricata 1 



Thecestemus sp 2 



Eupagoderes sp 1 



Rhigopsis effracta 5 



Trichalophus alternatus , 1 



Macrops sp 1 



HEMIPTERA. 



Zelus venardii- 

 Sinea diadema 



