2 74 REPORT OF THE FOREST, FISH AND GAME COMMISSION. 



would scarcely consider as the best kind of a hunting ground. This species of 

 owl is an abundant resident on the Pacific coast, and must have a very decided 

 effect upon the small mammalian fauna of that region. 



Damage Done to Trees H I^trds b% Desfro^incr gads. 



In treating of the pine grosbeak, reference was made to the fact that a portion 

 of its food consists of buds of trees. The pine grosbeak, the crossbills, the 

 purple finch (Carpadacus purpureas) and other species of the finches, and the ruffed 

 grouse and perhaps some others, have all been accused of doing harm to trees 

 by eating the buds, both of blossoms and leaves. As far as the writer has been 

 able to observe, very little such harm is done, even when the disbudding has 

 been quite extensive. As a general rule, buds upon- trees are superabundant. 

 Moreover, nature has kindly arranged that when one set of buds are taken from 

 a tree a new supply are at once developed from around the bases of the old set, 

 or often at a distance from these places, and the tree appears to suffer no appreci- 

 able harm. In one case which came under the writer's observation, a portion of 

 the mowing land of an abandoned farm was by nature seeded to poplars {Popiilus 

 tremuloides) , which came up very thickly over a considerable area. When these 

 trees were a few feet in hight they became the feeding ground for ruffed grouse 

 from the adjacent woods, and these birds might be seen feeding there any evening 

 during the winter months. 



As the area of forest was quite extensive, there were many grouse that soon 

 made the poplar patch their regular foraging ground ; but, in spite of this, within 

 ten years the trees had grown to between thirty and forty feet in hight, and 

 were as thrifty as could be desired. 



In another instance an apple orchard was bounded on two sides by woodland and 

 the grouse "budded" extensively upon the trees that were nearest to the forest. 

 These birds are supposed to have a special fondness for the blossom buds of apple 

 trees, and often venture to quite a distance from their forest retreats in order 

 to gratify this taste, so it is to be inferred that in the instance where the trees 

 were so easily accessible they did their best, or, from a horticultural point of 

 view, their worst. In any case a careful inspection year after year of the trees 

 nearest the woods did not show any inferiority in fruit bearing or in any other 

 respect as compared with those at a distance. Most trees, either of the orchard 

 or forest, produce several times as many blossoms as they are able to mature, so 

 that the taking away of a portion of them, if not carried too far, is a positive 

 benefit. 



