36 
of 52 stomachs showed that 98 per cent of the stomach contents was 
made up of insects or their allies, and only 2 per cent was vege- 
table, including bits of grass and similar matter, evidently taken by 
accident with the insects. Half of this food consisted of grasshoppers 
and beetles; the remainder of caterpillars, bugs, and spiders. As the 
house wren is a prolific breeder, frequently rearing from twelve to six- 
teen young in a season, a family of these birds must cause considerabie 
reduction in the number of insects in a garden, Wrens are industrious 
foragers, searching every tree, shrub, or vine for caterpillars, exam- 
ining every post and rail of the fence, and every cranny in the wall for 
insects or spiders. They do not, as a rule, fly far afield, but work 
DK SS 
7 4 - 
4 Sy NS 
Y) Z We Ze 
Fig. 20.—House wren. 
industriously in the immediate vicinity of their nests. In this way 
they become valuable aids in the garden or orchard, and by providing 
suitable nesting boxes they may be induced to take up residence where 
their services will do most good. Their eccentricities in the selection 
of a home are well known. Almost anything, from an old cigar box to 
a tomato can, an old teapot, a worn-out boot, or a horse’s skull, is 
acceptable, provided it be placed well up from the ground and out of 
reach of cats and other prowlers. 
It does not seem possible to have too many wrens, and every effort 
should be made to protect them and to encourage their nesting about 
the house. 
