214 USEFUL BIRDS. 



stroying those concealed insects which so well escape all but 

 the sharpest eyes. Nocturnal moths, such as the Oatocalas, 

 which remain motionless on the tree trunks by day, almost 

 invisible because of their protective coloring, are captured 

 by the Tanager. Even the largest moths, like cecrqpia and 

 luna, are killed and eaten by this indefatigable insect hunter. 

 Mr. C. E. Bailey once told me that he saw a male Tanager 

 swallow a luna moth nearly entire, removing only one of the 

 insect's wings in the process ; but this haste may have been 

 caused by the attempts of several other birds to take his prey 

 from him. Mr. Bailey brought me the wing of the moth that 

 was dropped, lest its identity should be questioned. I once 

 saw a male Tanager swallow what appeared to be a hellgra- 

 mite or dobson {Oorydalis cornuta) head first and appar- 

 ently entire, though not without much effort. No one who 

 will examine the plate of the luna moth, opposite this page, 

 can fail to appreciate the capacity of the Tanager. It is 

 difficult to see how the bird can accomplish such feats of deg- 

 lutition. As a caterpillar hunter the bird has few superiors. 

 It is often very destructive to the gipsy moth, taking all 

 stages but the eggs, and undoubtedly will prove equally 

 useful against the brown-tail moth. Leaf-rolling caterpillars 

 it skillfully takes from the rolled leaves, and it also digs out 

 the larvae of gall insects from their hiding places. Many 

 other injurious larvse are taken. Wood-boring beetles, bark- 

 boring beetles, and weevils form a considerable portion of 

 its food during the months when these insects can be found. 

 Click beetles, leaf-eating beetles, and crane flies are greedily 

 eaten. These beneficial habits are not only of service in 

 woodlands, but they are exercised in orchards, which are 

 often frequented by Tanagers. Nor is this bird confined to 

 trees, for during the cooler weather of early spring it goes 

 to the ground, and on plowed lands follows the plow like the 

 Blackbird or Robin, picking up earthworms, grubs, ants, and 

 ground beetles. Grasshoppers, locusts, and a few bugs are 

 taken, largely from the ground, grass, or shrubbery. 



Some useful ichneumon flies are destroyed, and a few 

 spiders and their eggs. Nuttall says that Tanagers eat 

 whortleberries and seeds, but so, far as my observations and 



