i94 THE CROW FAMlLV. 



A gentleman has been recently writing to the pastoral journals and newspapers advocating the 

 introduction into our western lands of carnivorous scavenger birds from India and Africa, to do away 

 with the blowfly pest. All the objections that the sheepowners can bring against the crows can be 

 urged against the Turkey Buzzards or Vultures of America, and the Indian Adjutant or Marabou 

 Storks. 



The following notes are taken from a letter by the writer which appeared in the May number 

 of the " Pastoral Review," 1918 : — " When the writer was in the Hawaiian Islands in 1907, a sheep 

 maggot fly was infesting the flocks on the ranches, and the sheep men suggested to the Federal authorities 

 that they might be allowed to introduce ' Turkey Vultures,' also known as Turkey Buzzards, into 

 these islands from Texas. These carrion birds have an extended range from the Southern United 

 States, through Cuba, Mexico, the West Indies and South America, where they are recognised as the 

 most effective scavenger birds. When consulted, however, the Texan ranchmen strongly advised 

 against their introduction, as they fouled all the watering places of the stock and were known to 

 spread anthrax. 



" Later on 1 had many opportunities of investigating the habits of these birds in Mexico and Cuba. 

 At sunset I often watched hundreds of them winging their way into the town, to roost upon the dome 

 of the Cathedral or the roofs of the public buildings, generally situated in the centre of the town. In 

 the daytime one often saw them like our starlings, in the poultry yards hi the villages, quarrelling with 

 the poultry for the scraps. In Jamaica the blacks call them ' Jim Crows,' and wher carrion is scarce 

 they often snap up the chickens. My host at Spanish Town shot one in the act and I examinee! the 

 remains, which, for smell and uncleanliness, knocked out our Australian crow, who is a gentleman in 

 comparison to a ' Jim Crow.' If we introduced such birds into our western plains, and they increased 

 in sufficient numbers to become valuable as scavengers, where would they spend their evenings ? 

 What would the good citizens of Hay or Deniliquin say, for example, if swarms of these buzzards, 

 as large as small turkeys, came flying in every night to roost and quarrel on the roofs of their public 

 buildings." 



As regards the Crow, the writer, in a paper in the Agricultural Gazette of New South Wales, has 

 given some testimonials in his favour from landowners of experience. Mr. Arthur C. V.Bligh, writing 

 from Condamine Plains, Brookstead, Queensland, on the blowfly question, says : " Any sheep dying 

 that are missed are cultivating a fine crop of flies for future trouble. Being situated on the plains the 

 carcases are hard to destroy, but I find by skinning any sheep (I find in time) the crows clean the flesh 

 from them in a few hours and leave them absolutely safe, as far as blowfly maggots are concerned. 

 These birds, I think are invaluable as insect destroyers, and in cleaninig up this way are a great assist- 

 ance to the stockowner." 



Mr. P. Brookfield, the member for Broken Hill, speaking on the Birds Protection Bill, said : 

 " Many people denounce the crow as one of the crudest and most vicious of birds. It is only a matter 

 of surrounding conditions. In the north of Queensland, where the cattle pest is prevalent, the crow, 

 so far from being a menace, is an assistance to the cattle raiser. I have many times seen a beast 

 covered with ticks lie down and allow the crows to alight upon him and pick the ticks off. The tick, 

 like every other parasite, clings to the poor beast with greater tenacity than to the healthy one. When 

 the parasites were cleared off from one side, the beast would rise up and lie on the other side, anil allow 

 the crows to clean that side." - 



This is a record of the crow under the new role of a cattle tick destroyer, which the writer lias no! 

 previously seen noted. 



That the crow often becomes a pest bird in a bad season, among weak ewes and lambs in particular, 

 cannot be disputed. That he can also be considered a very valuable assistant to the farmer and stock- 

 owner cannot be questioned. As an insect-eating bird alone he has the qualifications of large size, 

 a very healthy appetite, and the habit of gathering together in large numbers and systematically 

 hunting over the surface of the plains all the year round. 



