70 PHEASANTS FOB COVERTS AND AVIABIES. 



but I can confirm the destruction of pheasants' eggs. A few 

 years ago, in a dry spring, with a north-east wind for many 

 weeks, when the rooks could not bore for their accustomed 

 food, about one hundred and fifty pheasants' eggs — i.e., the 

 shells — were found under the rookery near the house, having 

 been taken by the rooks to feed their young, other food 

 failing them. I have caught them when baiting traps with 

 eggs for magpies ; but still I consider the rook (barring these 

 serious misdemeanours) a most useful bird." 



Mr. J. E. Harting informs me that on one occasion, in the 

 month of April, about the 14th or 15th, he saw a rook in the 

 act of carrying off a pheasant's egg from a copse. The bird 

 was carrying the &gg upon the point of the bill, and on being 

 fired at he dropped it, and when picked up it was found to be 

 empty, although still wet inside. There was a large and 

 irregularly shaped hole towards the larger end. On the very 

 ground where this occurred, my informant had heard the 

 keeper say that he had on more than one occasion shot rooks 

 in the act of carrying off pheasants' eggs. 



The balance of the evidence for and against the rook in 

 respect of its conduct regarding the eggs of pheasants, 

 appears to show that, saving in seasons of an exceptional 

 character, or in cases where the eggs are left exposed by 

 mowing, the influence of the bird is not seriously antagonistic 

 to the rearing of pheasants ; but when hard pressed for food, 

 rooks will even destroy the young birds. A correspondent 

 writes as follows : — " On June 13 my keeper observed about 

 half a dozen rooks engaged amongst the coops of young 

 pheasants, and, suspecting their object, drove them off. The 

 next morniug, having fed and watered the young birds, he 

 went to his cottage, and, looking out about six o'clock, saw a 

 strong detachment of rooks from a neighbouring colony in 

 great excitement amongst the coops. He ran down, a 

 distance of two hundred yards, as fast as possible, but before 

 he arrived they had succeeded in killing, and for the most 

 part carrying off, from forty to fifty birds, two or three weeks 



