312 NATURE STUDY AND LIFE 



Again, in times of great drought in regions where our 

 common species breed, both food and water may become 

 so scarce that numbers of nestlings famish or starve. The 

 birds then are loath to desert their nests to go to regions 

 of plenty. If birds were tamed sufficiently to come to 

 man as their friend in times of great need, as they do in 

 rare cases now, and as they learned to come to Mrs. 

 Brightwen, a little food and shelter might tide them over 

 the hard time, and their service afterwards would repay 

 the outlay a thousandfold. About the house and barn 

 and shade trees safe places of shelter might save great 

 numbers of birds every year, due care being exercised to 

 keep them clear of English sparrows and place them out 

 of the reach of cats. 



Cats are generally recognized as the worst enemies of 

 our native birds. ^ Professor Forbush has estimated that 

 a cat is responsible on the average for the death of about 

 fifty song birds a year ; and one cat, to his knowledge, 

 destroyed six bird's-nests in a single day. In connection 

 with their bird work the children should be encouraged to 

 gather all the evidence they can for their district ; they 

 will then be more willing to choose other pets. All the 

 wild, stray, or worthless cats of a neighborhood should be 

 destroyed, as a mercy not only to the birds but to the 

 cats themselves. People who have cats that they value, 

 ought, for love of nature, to see to it that they are provided 

 with other food than young robins, orioles, thrushes, and 

 song sparrows. Much may be done by way of training 

 cats to let birds alone, and lastly, they should be kept in 



1 " The foremost place among all song bird destroyers, as we have already 

 said, must be assigned to the house cat." Lange. 



