TEXAS NATtiRE OBSERVATIONS AND REMINISCENCES. 171 



from these enemies that destroy 

 them, that in a few years they 

 would not require any protection 

 from the hunters; that they would 

 increase so fast that they would 

 take the country. He says the 

 worst enemy they have is the 

 ground squirrel, which destroys 

 , the eggs and eats the young birds." 



The second contribution in the 

 Field and Sportsman reads: 



"Dr. George R. Dashiell of 

 Devine, one of the volunteer game 

 commissioners for this section, 

 reports that the greatest menace 

 to the propagation of quail in his 

 section this year was the little 

 ground squirrel. Dr. Dashiell has 

 field deputies appointed in his 

 territory, with instructions to make 

 surveys of the ground where quail 

 nest, and the movements of their 

 bevies when hatched, One en- 

 thusiastic birdologist under the 

 doctor's supervision, made note 

 of a nest full of quail eggs one day, 

 and watched the disappearance 

 of one egg a day until they were 

 all gone except one. The enthusi- 

 astic birdologist determi&ed to 

 catch the thief. So he .piped 

 the remaining egg and placed 

 therein poison. The next morning 

 he found in the nest a measley 

 little ground squirrel cold in death. 

 A close observation in that country 

 develoj)ed the fact that where 

 wolves are not numerous the ground 

 squirrel is plentiful, and depredates 

 upon the nests of Mrs. Bob White." 



From these interesting observa- 

 tions it appears the otherwise 

 very neat and attractive ground 

 squirrels are a great menace 

 to bird eggs, and the favored 

 game bird — the quail eggs in partic- 

 ular. But few bird species besides 

 the quail prepare their nests anql 

 breed on the ground, and the 

 quail's nest, often harboring twenty 

 or more eggs, is quite a rudimentary 

 arrangertient of only a few grass- 

 stems and remnants of leaves, 

 and it is otherwise but little protect- 

 ed, except that quail prepare 

 their nests in well secluded under- 



brush and dense grass, generally 

 close to or inside a thicket of 

 underbrush or piled-up tree bnanch- 

 es. Two such nests, with nearly 

 twenty eggs, were once seen by 

 the writer at a place where the 

 land had been cleared of brush 

 and where the clever female "Bob 

 White" had prepared her nest 

 near the center of the trash pile, 

 well protected from all sides; and 

 it was detected only when the bird 

 had flown away and exposed some 

 of the white eggs. 



From the direct evidence related 

 above there hardly can be a 

 doubt that the ground squirrel 

 feeds on the eggs of quail; however, 

 it seems to the writer the matter 

 needs still further direct observa- 

 tion. Ground squirrels belong to 

 the same class of rodents as the 

 common squirrel family, rats, mice, 

 prairie dogs, the beaver, etc., 

 but their main food undoubtedly 

 consists of grain, plants, roots and 

 fruit. But even the common tree 

 squirrel has been observed to 

 feed on animal foodstuffs; and 

 it is known that animals of other 

 tribes, which otherwise are strictly 

 herbivorous, also feed occasionally 

 and under certain forced circum- 

 stances upon animal substanses. 



The quail, being also a ground 

 bird, has easy access to its nest 

 by these rodents, but it must also 

 be considered that numerous other 

 animals of prey — mammals as well 

 as birds — are liable to ' destroy 

 and feed on quail eggs; and also 

 the elements, excessiXre rains, storm 

 and hail is liable to destroy the 

 eggs or the entire young brood, 

 though not so numerous as is the 

 case in wild doves. The latter 

 prepare a very fragile nest on a 

 limb of a tree (mostly mesquite,) 

 and any heavy windstorm can 

 dislodge the breeding bird and 

 roll the eggs to the ground. There 

 is no doubt that it has been 

 proven in heavy rainstorms, that 

 innumerable dove and other bird 

 eggs or the young brood of same 

 havis been destroyed by such 



