ECONOMIC VALUE OF THE STARLING. 27 



of their fruit by robins and starlings in 1916. These are but examples 

 of the many instances which came to the notice of the writers while 

 in the field of birds taking part or all of the fruit from isolated trees. 



Of the 2,301 stomachs of adult starlings examined, 169 contained 

 cultivated cherries, which formed 2.66 per cent of the yearly food of 

 the species. Early cherries in June were eaten by 67 of the 215 birds 

 examined, while late varieties in July furnished food for 91 of 375. 

 In June, this fruit formed 17.01 per cent of the adult starling's food, 

 and in July, 14.92 per cent. 



Without attempting to mitigate the offense of the starling by calling 

 attention to another notorious cherry thief, some idea of the extent of 

 the starling's activities may be gained by comparing its food habits 

 with those of the robin. From the examination of 1,236 stomachs of 

 robins, it has been found that this species feeds on cultivated fruit 

 to the extent of 8.63 per cent of its annual food, as against 4.41 for 

 the starling. During the months of June and July, the robins 

 obtained 24.58 per cent and 22.71 per cent, respectively, of their food 

 from cultivated cherries, quantities half again as great as those con- 

 sumed by starlings in the same months. Another matter of note is 

 the number of complaints against the robin as compared with the 

 number made against the starling for the same offense. This is in 

 part due to the different methods of feeding employed by the two 

 species. The robin is universally distributed and feeds in loose 

 flocks, individuals of which may be found maintaining an almost 

 uninterrupted procession to and from some favorite cherry tree for 

 entire days. At no time will a great number of the birds be found in 

 a tree, but the slow drain on the cherry crop is constant through all 

 hours of daylight. The birds are frequently feeding young at this 

 time and are carrying cherries to them. On the other hand, star- 

 lings, the young of which are the chief offenders, frequently gather in 

 large flocks, and, swooping down on a single tree, completely strip it of 

 fruit while other trees in the neighborhood may remain untouched. 

 As a result, while practically every cherry grower complains of the 

 robin, those who suffer from the more spectacular raids of the star- 

 ling are much more bitter in their complaints. This condition led 

 to an investigation at several points in Connecticut to determine 

 the relative damage caused by several cherry-eating species, and trees 

 were watched to determine as far as possible the number of birds 

 eating the fruit. The summary of the data obtained is presented in 

 Table I. 



