150 USEFUL BIRDS. 
which feed upon the fruit, seed, or other parts of the tree 
an increased opportunity to multiply. Insects unfamiliar to 
our native birds are introduced. The undergrowth, shrub- 
bery, and vines which shelter many such useful birds are 
cleared away. This drives these birds away, and so the fight 
against insects in the orchard is begun with an inadequate 
number and variety of birds and an unusual abundance of 
insects. 
Even under these adverse conditions, the entire protection 
of the foliage from insects may be left to birds, provided that 
the orchard is favorably situated, that the birds are attracted 
to it in winter, and that those which nest there in summer 
are protected, encouraged, and furnished with nesting places. 
This I have demonstrated by a series of experiments, cover- 
ing a period of about ten years. 
The protection of the trees and their foliage by birds in- 
sures the maturing of such fruit as the trees will bear ; and, 
as probably two-thirds of the fruit trees in Massachusetts 
receive little care at the hands of their owners, the people 
of the Commonwealth are largely indebted to the birds fora 
great part of their annual fruit crop. Even as it is, insect 
pests destroy a large part of the apple crop in some seasons, 
and hardly a hand appears to be raised to stay them. Hence 
I repeat that such fruit crops as we get are largely due to the 
protection our trees receive from the birds. 
My first attempt at availing myself of the services of the 
birds in an orchard was made in 1894—95, and the result was 
given in a bulletin issued by the State Board of Agriculture. 
The winter birds were attracted to the orchard, and fre- 
quented the trees during the entire winter of 1894-95. In 
the fall, winter, and spring they destroyed many thousands 
of the imagoes and eggs of the fall and spring cankerworm 
moths, the eggs of the tent caterpillar, and probably also the 
pupee and imagoes of the codling moth, besides scales, tineids, 
and other enemies of the trees. When spring came, efforts 
were made to attract the summer birds to the orchard. These 
attempts met with such signal success that, although most of 
the eggs and young birds were destroyed by cats, boys, 
Srows, and other agencies, the remaining injurious insects 
