THE RED-WINGED BLACKBIRD. 41 
Vegetable substances found in stomachs of red-winged blackbirds. 
Grain: Stomachs. | Weeds—Continued. Stomachs. 
Oats. scnfiaues aaa ene Lee rents 190 Smartweed (Polygonum) .....-- 200 
COTM: a usliiool ae n eens ies a 117 Sorrel (Rumex) -.............- 64 
Wheat cescck oe ceaeenteee svcd 68 Chickweed (Alsine)...........- 9 
Barleyz eves sese een cece ac 8 2 Unidentified ....2...22...2222. 168 
Forage: Fruits: 
Clover (Trifolium) ............- 4 Blackberry (Rubus) ........... i 
Sorghum (Sorghum) ..-.......- 5 Blueberry (Vaccinium) ........ 2 
Timothy (Phlewm) .....-....-. 7 Gooseberry (Ribes) ...@..-....- 1 
Weeds: Strawberry (Fragaria)......... a 
Panic-grass (Panicum)......... 168 Indian currant (Symphoricarpos) 1 
Joint-grass (Paspalum)......... 21 Hackberry (Celtis occidentalis)... 1 
Barngrass (Chatochloa) .-...... 271 Unidentified -.-.......22...... 14 
Wild rice (Zizania) ..-......... 24 | Miscellaneous: 
Amaranth (Amaranthus)... .... 4 Bayberry (Myrica cerifera) .._.. 2 
Ragweed (Ambrosia)........... 189 Beechnuts (Fagus) -......-.... 1 
Pigweed (Chenopodium) -..-... 4 Pine seed (Pinus) ............- 10 
Sunflower (Helianthus) ........ 13 Sedge (Carex)......--....-.... 1 
Gromwell (Lithospermum)....-. 1 Bulb or tuber ..-..---222.22... 4 
Plantain (Plantago).....-..---- 1 Rubbish -....-..-2.22.----...- 54 
In the list the chief interest, of course, centers about the grain. 
Of the four kinds eaten, oats are evidently the favorite, for they were 
found in 190 stomachs and amount to 6.3 percent of the year’s food. 
April shows a little less than 6 percent for the month, undoubtedly 
collected from newly sown fields. In June they fall to less than 2 per- 
cent, in July rise to 22.6, increase somewhat in August, fall to 4.2 in 
September, and disappear entirely before the end of October. A few 
were found in December, but they do not appear in the other winter 
months. The oats eaten in July were probably taken from standing 
or newly cut grain,as perhaps were some of those eaten in August; 
but most of the oats in the United States are cut before the end of 
July, so that the greater part of those that were taken after this 
month must have been gleaned from the stubble or pilfered from the 
sheck. Wheat first appears in March to the amount of 1.5 percent, 
but does not become an important item of food until July, when it 
rises abruptly to 13.1 percent. As July is the harvest month for 
wheat in most parts of this country it is reasonably certain that this 
grain is taken from the standing crop or gathered from the field after 
the reaper has done its work. August and September show 6.2 and 
1.6 percent, respectively, all of which must have been scattered grain 
except where it could be stolen from the shock. The total amount of 
wheat for the year is only 2.2 percent. Corn is eaten to the extent 
of 2.6 percent in February, but the amount increases to 9.2 percent 
in March, after which it decreases to 3.0 percent in June. It rises 
through July and August to 7.5 percent in September, but falls off 
rapidly after September and is unimportant during the remainder of 
the year. The average for the year is 4.6 percent. 
