No. 3, Reprints an(i Miscellaneous Notes. i6i 



Ragweed (Ambrosia). 



Magnolia seed {Magnolia grandi- 

 flora). 



Acorns (Quercus). 



Seed unidentified. 



Cambium. 



Rubbish. 



Miscellaneous — contd. 



KnoUveed or smartvveed (Polygonum 



convolvulus, P, persicaria, P. lapa- 



thifolium). 

 Clover seed (Trifolium repens). 

 Grass seed (Phleti7n). 

 Pigweed seed (Chenopodium). 

 Mullein seed (Verbascum thapsus). 



Of the two kinds of grain in the above list, corn was identified in 

 5 stomachs, buckwheat in i. One of the stomachs containino" corn 

 was taken in March and the bird had made a full meal of it, probably 

 because he could get nothing else. Three of the others were col- 

 lected in September, and the corn was evidently " in the milk." The 

 fifth was taken in October, and is of a somewhat doubtful nature. 



The Department of Agriculture has received a number of reports 

 that implicate woodpeckers in damage done to crops. The only one 

 of any consequence is from Dr. E. S. C. Foster, of Russell County 

 Kans., who states that the Red-headed and Golden-winged Wood- 

 peckers damage corn in the roasting ear by tearing open the husks. 

 He does not say for what purpose the husks are torn open, though 

 some observers have declared that the object is to obtain the grub 

 which sometimes infests the ear. The testimony furnished by the 

 stomachs does not indicate that the Golden-wing has much to do 

 with corn stealing, for it appears that out of g8 stomachs taken in 

 September and October, the season of harvest, only 4 contained corn 

 at all, and these in quantities ranging from 4 to 30 per cent, of the 

 stomach contents. The buck-wheat was eaten in September. The 

 Flicker has a rich and varied list of fruit, embracing at least 20 

 different kinds, nearly all of which are wild. 



The two items of grain and fruit together constitute about 25 

 per cent, of the whole food, the grain, however, being of little conse- 

 quence. With all this fruit-eating the Flicker trespassed upon man 

 preserves for cherries only, and these were found in only i stomach. 

 Several observers, however, have testified that some damage is done. 

 T. J. Parrish, of Cooke County, Tex., states that the Yellow-hammers 

 and small woodpeckers feed on peaches, plums, grapes, and cherries. 



Miscellaneous vegetable substances aggregate a little more than 

 10 per cent, of the whole food of this bird, and like the fruit list, 

 consist of a variety of elements. Poison ivy seeds were found in 20 

 stomachs, poison sumac in 5, and bayberries in 14. All these seeds 

 are coated with a white substance resembling wax, and while the 

 quantity is small compared with the size of the seeds, it is probably 

 rich in nutritive properties, for the seeds are a favorite article of 



