﻿FOOD 
  HABITS. 
  27 
  

  

  FOOD 
  HABITS 
  OF 
  BOBWHITE. 
  

  

  Both 
  field 
  and 
  laboratory 
  investigations 
  of 
  the 
  food 
  habits 
  of 
  the 
  

   bobwhite 
  have 
  been 
  conducted 
  by 
  the 
  Biological 
  Survey. 
  The 
  field 
  

   work 
  was 
  confined 
  chiefly 
  to 
  Maryland 
  and 
  Virginia, 
  and, 
  although 
  

   it 
  represents 
  in 
  some 
  degree 
  every 
  month 
  in 
  the 
  year, 
  has 
  been 
  limited 
  

   mainly 
  to 
  the 
  breeding 
  and 
  the 
  hunting 
  seasons. 
  The 
  laboratory 
  

   work 
  to 
  determine 
  the 
  different 
  kinds 
  of 
  food 
  and 
  their 
  proportions 
  

   has 
  included 
  examination 
  of 
  the 
  contents 
  of 
  crops 
  and 
  gizzards 
  from 
  

   918 
  birds. 
  This 
  material 
  was 
  collected 
  from 
  21 
  States, 
  Canada, 
  the 
  

   District 
  of 
  Columbia, 
  and 
  Mexico, 
  but 
  chiefly 
  from 
  New 
  York, 
  Mary- 
  

   land, 
  Virginia, 
  Florida, 
  Illinois, 
  South 
  Dakota, 
  Nebraska, 
  Kansas, 
  

   and 
  Texas. 
  Stomachs 
  were 
  obtained 
  each 
  month 
  of 
  the 
  year, 
  but 
  un- 
  

   fortunately 
  few 
  were 
  collected 
  in 
  the 
  breeding 
  season. 
  Laboratory 
  

   work 
  included 
  also 
  feeding 
  experiments 
  with 
  three 
  pairs 
  of 
  captive 
  

   bobwhites 
  obtained 
  from 
  Kansas. 
  

  

  The 
  bird's 
  digestive 
  organs 
  are 
  well 
  adapted 
  to 
  the 
  character 
  of 
  its 
  

   diet. 
  The 
  stomach, 
  or 
  gizzard, 
  as 
  it 
  is 
  commonly 
  called, 
  is 
  provided 
  

   with 
  powerful 
  muscles 
  for 
  grinding 
  the 
  hard 
  seeds 
  on 
  which 
  the 
  bird 
  

   largely 
  subsists. 
  The 
  crop, 
  a 
  sac 
  like 
  enlargement 
  of 
  the 
  oesophagus, 
  

   is 
  a 
  mere 
  membranous 
  receptacle 
  for 
  first 
  receiving 
  the 
  food, 
  and 
  is 
  

   without 
  muscles. 
  Its 
  capacity 
  is 
  usually 
  from 
  four 
  to 
  six 
  times 
  that 
  

   of 
  the 
  stomach. 
  

  

  The 
  bobwhite 
  is 
  insectivorous 
  as 
  well 
  as 
  graminivorous. 
  . 
  It 
  is, 
  in 
  

   fact, 
  one 
  of 
  our 
  most 
  nearly 
  omnivorous 
  species. 
  In 
  addition 
  to 
  

   seeds, 
  fruit, 
  leaves, 
  buds, 
  tubers, 
  and 
  insects, 
  it 
  has 
  been 
  known 
  to 
  eat 
  

   spiders, 
  myriapods, 
  crustaceans, 
  mollusks, 
  and 
  even 
  batrachians. 
  

   The 
  food 
  for 
  the 
  year 
  as 
  a 
  whole, 
  calculated 
  by 
  volume 
  and 
  deter- 
  

   mined 
  by 
  analysis 
  of 
  the 
  contents 
  of 
  918 
  stomachs, 
  consisted 
  of 
  vege- 
  

   table 
  matter, 
  83.59 
  per 
  cent, 
  and 
  animal 
  matter, 
  16.41 
  per 
  cent. 
  In 
  

   addition, 
  there 
  was 
  mineral 
  matter 
  varying 
  in 
  amount 
  from 
  1 
  to 
  5 
  

   per 
  cent 
  of 
  the 
  gross 
  contents 
  of 
  the 
  stomachs, 
  and 
  in 
  exceptional 
  cases 
  

   rising 
  to 
  30 
  per 
  cent. 
  This 
  usually 
  consisted 
  of 
  sand, 
  with 
  coarser 
  

   bits 
  of 
  quartz 
  2 
  to 
  7 
  mm. 
  in 
  diameter, 
  which 
  were 
  taken 
  to 
  pulverize 
  

   the 
  food 
  and 
  thus 
  render 
  it 
  easier 
  of 
  assimilation. 
  

  

  The 
  vegetable 
  part 
  of 
  the 
  food 
  consisted 
  of 
  grain, 
  17.38 
  per 
  cent; 
  

   various 
  seeds, 
  chiefly 
  weeds, 
  52.83 
  per 
  cent; 
  fruit, 
  9.57 
  per 
  cent, 
  and 
  

   miscellaneous 
  vegetable 
  matter, 
  3.81 
  per 
  cent. 
  The 
  animal 
  matter 
  in 
  

   the 
  food 
  was 
  distributed 
  as 
  follows: 
  Beetles, 
  6.92 
  per 
  cent; 
  grass- 
  

   hoppers, 
  3.71 
  per 
  cent; 
  bugs, 
  2.77 
  per 
  cent; 
  caterpillars, 
  0.95 
  per 
  

   cent; 
  miscellaneous 
  insects, 
  0.70 
  per 
  cent; 
  and 
  other 
  invertebrates, 
  

   largely 
  spiders, 
  1.36 
  per 
  cent. 
  

  

  The 
  insect 
  food 
  of 
  bobwhite, 
  in 
  comparison 
  with 
  that 
  of 
  other 
  

   birds, 
  is 
  interesting. 
  It 
  includes 
  fewer 
  caterpillars, 
  ants, 
  and 
  other 
  

   Hymenoptera, 
  but 
  more 
  bugs 
  ; 
  and, 
  singularly 
  enough 
  in 
  a 
  terrestrial 
  

  

  