﻿16 
  HORNED 
  LARKS 
  IN 
  RELATION 
  TO 
  AGRICULTURE. 
  

  

  Iii 
  the 
  following 
  letter 
  George 
  Lang, 
  of 
  Indian 
  Head, 
  Assiniboia, 
  

   describes 
  the 
  depredations 
  of 
  the 
  lark 
  in 
  greater 
  detail, 
  and 
  points 
  out 
  

   that 
  the 
  use 
  of 
  deep 
  planting 
  drills 
  has 
  rendered 
  the 
  birds 
  harmless: 
  

  

  The 
  damage 
  is 
  done 
  as 
  a 
  rule 
  about 
  the 
  first 
  two 
  weeks 
  in 
  May 
  while 
  the 
  wheat 
  is 
  

   in 
  the 
  first 
  leaf. 
  I 
  have 
  examined 
  the 
  stomachs 
  of 
  hundreds 
  of 
  specimens, 
  and 
  in 
  

   almost 
  every 
  case 
  I 
  found 
  grains 
  of 
  wheat. 
  These 
  birds, 
  in 
  company 
  w 
  T 
  ith 
  snow 
  

   buntings 
  and 
  chestnut-collared 
  buntings, 
  are 
  here 
  in 
  millions 
  from 
  about 
  April 
  15 
  to 
  

   May 
  15. 
  They 
  pick 
  up 
  all 
  uncovered 
  kernels 
  first 
  and 
  then 
  as 
  soon 
  as 
  the 
  young 
  

   shoots 
  appear 
  above 
  ground 
  they 
  follow 
  up 
  the 
  rows 
  and 
  pull 
  up 
  the 
  stalk, 
  eating 
  

   only 
  the 
  sprouted 
  kernel, 
  and 
  leave 
  the 
  leaf 
  lying 
  on 
  the 
  ground. 
  Of 
  course 
  they 
  

   break 
  off 
  a 
  great 
  many 
  more 
  than 
  they 
  uproot, 
  but 
  still 
  they 
  thin 
  out 
  the 
  grain 
  to 
  

   quite 
  an 
  extent. 
  In 
  earlier 
  years, 
  before 
  we 
  began 
  using 
  drills 
  for 
  seeding 
  wheat, 
  we 
  

   always 
  counted 
  on 
  one-half 
  bushel 
  to 
  the 
  acre 
  for 
  the 
  grain 
  birds, 
  as 
  we 
  counted 
  they 
  

   would 
  pick 
  up 
  that 
  amount. 
  I 
  know 
  of 
  fields 
  that 
  had 
  to 
  be 
  seeded 
  over 
  the 
  second 
  

   time 
  where 
  the 
  harrows 
  were 
  not 
  kept 
  close 
  up 
  to 
  the 
  seeder. 
  I 
  have 
  also 
  been 
  

   driven 
  to 
  poisoning 
  wheat 
  and 
  scattering 
  around 
  the 
  fields. 
  Of 
  late 
  years 
  we 
  do 
  not 
  

   notice 
  these 
  birds 
  so 
  much. 
  1 
  suppose 
  on 
  account 
  of 
  the 
  increased 
  acreage 
  the 
  birds 
  

   are 
  more 
  scattered, 
  and 
  also 
  on 
  account 
  of 
  the 
  press 
  drills 
  putting 
  the 
  seed 
  too 
  .deep 
  

   for 
  the 
  birds 
  to 
  uproot. 
  

  

  As 
  in 
  the 
  case 
  of 
  the 
  California 
  larks, 
  stomach 
  examinations 
  confirm 
  

   field 
  observations 
  with 
  regard 
  to 
  the 
  grain-eating 
  habits 
  of 
  the 
  larks 
  

   of 
  the 
  central 
  plains 
  wheat 
  region. 
  Of 
  23 
  stomachs 
  of 
  horned 
  larks 
  

   collected 
  here 
  in 
  April 
  and 
  the 
  same 
  number 
  in 
  May, 
  46 
  in 
  all, 
  11 
  

   contained 
  wheat. 
  Seven 
  of 
  these 
  were 
  collected 
  on 
  April 
  5 
  in 
  a 
  

   newly 
  sown 
  wheat 
  field 
  at 
  Kennedy, 
  Nebr., 
  and 
  all 
  held 
  wheat. 
  The 
  

   average 
  amount 
  for 
  the 
  7 
  was 
  28.4 
  percent, 
  and 
  no 
  individual 
  had 
  

   taken 
  more 
  than 
  35 
  percent. 
  The 
  remainder 
  of 
  the 
  food 
  was 
  weed 
  

   seeds. 
  These 
  were 
  seeds 
  of 
  sunflower, 
  tumbleweed, 
  and 
  pigweed. 
  

   Thus 
  the 
  birds 
  which 
  had 
  made 
  something 
  over 
  a 
  fourth 
  of 
  their 
  meal 
  

   of 
  wheat 
  had 
  eaten 
  nearly 
  three 
  times 
  that 
  amount 
  of 
  the 
  seeds 
  of 
  the 
  

   worst 
  weeds 
  in 
  the 
  country. 
  If 
  f 
  ully 
  a 
  third 
  of 
  their 
  food 
  had 
  been 
  

   wheat, 
  the 
  average 
  percentage 
  of 
  grain 
  for 
  the 
  whole 
  46 
  would 
  be 
  

   .only 
  slightly 
  over 
  7 
  percent, 
  an 
  amount 
  clearly 
  too 
  trivial 
  to 
  warrant 
  

   the 
  condemnation 
  of 
  the 
  birds, 
  especially 
  in 
  view 
  of 
  the 
  fact 
  that 
  the 
  

   remainder 
  of 
  their 
  food 
  consists 
  of 
  the 
  seeds 
  of 
  noxious 
  weeds. 
  

  

  It 
  is 
  of 
  importance 
  to 
  note 
  that 
  the 
  complaints 
  quoted 
  above 
  were 
  

   made 
  several 
  years 
  ago 
  when 
  broadcast 
  sowing 
  was 
  the 
  rule. 
  Recent 
  

   correspondence 
  shows 
  that 
  drilled 
  fields 
  of 
  wheat 
  are 
  practically 
  safe 
  

   from 
  injury 
  by 
  the 
  birds. 
  

  

  CORN. 
  

  

  Corn 
  constitutes 
  4.97 
  percent 
  of 
  the 
  food 
  of 
  the 
  horned 
  larks. 
  Since 
  

   it 
  is 
  always 
  planted 
  rather 
  deeply, 
  seed 
  corn 
  is 
  quite 
  out 
  of 
  their 
  reach, 
  

   and 
  even 
  grains 
  lying 
  on 
  the 
  surface 
  in 
  a 
  condition 
  to 
  germinate 
  are 
  

   probably 
  not 
  eaten 
  by 
  these 
  birds, 
  since 
  the 
  grain 
  is 
  too 
  large 
  to 
  be 
  

   swallowed 
  whole, 
  and 
  their 
  weak 
  bills 
  are 
  entirely 
  inadequate 
  to 
  the 
  

  

  