﻿USEFUL 
  INSECTS 
  EATEN. 
  

  

  •23 
  

  

  are 
  not 
  entirely 
  useful, 
  and 
  that 
  they 
  sometimes 
  attack 
  cultivated 
  crops, 
  

   has 
  been 
  shown 
  by 
  various 
  authors. 
  These 
  insects 
  together 
  make 
  up 
  

   only 
  one-fourth 
  of 
  1 
  percent 
  of 
  the 
  food 
  of 
  the 
  horned 
  larks, 
  which 
  

   may 
  be 
  said, 
  therefore, 
  to 
  eat 
  practically 
  no 
  

   insects 
  of 
  value 
  to 
  man. 
  Predaceous 
  beetles 
  of 
  

   one 
  family, 
  the 
  Carabidde, 
  live 
  on 
  the 
  surface 
  

   of 
  the 
  ground, 
  where 
  the 
  horned 
  larks 
  obtain 
  all 
  

   their 
  food, 
  and 
  it 
  is 
  strange 
  that 
  so 
  few 
  are 
  eaten. 
  

   As 
  these 
  insects 
  are 
  usually 
  active 
  only 
  at 
  night, 
  

   and 
  remain 
  concealed 
  by 
  day, 
  they 
  are 
  well 
  pro- 
  

   tected; 
  but 
  some 
  birds 
  eat 
  considerable 
  numbers 
  

   of 
  them. 
  Of 
  the 
  few 
  found 
  in 
  the 
  stomachs 
  of 
  

   horned 
  larks 
  only 
  one 
  species, 
  Agonodemispallijjes, 
  

   can 
  be 
  identified. 
  This 
  beetle 
  (fig. 
  3) 
  is 
  known 
  to 
  

   feed 
  upon 
  the 
  chinch 
  bug, 
  but 
  about 
  half 
  of 
  its 
  

   food 
  is 
  vegetable, 
  partly 
  grass 
  seed. 
  Its 
  eco- 
  

   nomic 
  relations, 
  then, 
  are 
  about 
  evenly 
  balanced, 
  and 
  its 
  wholesale 
  

   destruction 
  would 
  be 
  a 
  loss. 
  Only 
  15 
  of 
  the 
  1,154 
  birds 
  examined 
  

   had 
  eaten 
  any 
  carabids, 
  and 
  these 
  insects 
  represented 
  but 
  0.16 
  percent 
  

   of 
  the 
  total 
  food. 
  Thus 
  the 
  destruction 
  of 
  these 
  insects 
  by 
  the 
  horned 
  

   lark 
  is 
  too 
  slight 
  to 
  be 
  noticed. 
  Tiger 
  beetles, 
  another 
  group 
  of 
  pre- 
  

   daceous 
  beetles, 
  are 
  also 
  very 
  scantily 
  represented 
  in 
  the 
  food 
  of 
  

   the 
  horned 
  larks. 
  Although 
  the 
  larks 
  often 
  feed 
  on 
  the 
  sandy 
  beaches 
  

   and 
  roads 
  where 
  these 
  active 
  insects 
  are 
  most 
  abundant, 
  onty 
  two 
  of 
  

   them 
  had 
  been 
  secured 
  by 
  the 
  birds 
  examined. 
  

  

  Fig. 
  3.— 
  Predaceous 
  beetle 
  

   (Agonoderus 
  pallipes). 
  

   (From 
  Riley, 
  Bureau 
  of 
  

   Entomology.) 
  

  

  Fig. 
  4.— 
  June 
  bug 
  (Lachnosterna 
  arcuata) 
  and 
  its 
  larva, 
  a 
  

  

  Entomology.) 
  

  

  b 
  - 
  r 
  . 
  f 
  

  

  white 
  grub. 
  (From 
  Chittenden, 
  Bureau 
  of 
  

  

  Taking 
  up 
  the 
  injurious 
  species, 
  it 
  was 
  found 
  that 
  several 
  horned 
  

   larks 
  had 
  eaten 
  click 
  beetles, 
  both 
  in 
  the 
  adult 
  and 
  larval 
  stages. 
  The 
  

   larvae 
  are 
  the 
  wire 
  worms 
  which 
  are 
  injurious 
  to 
  grain 
  crops. 
  The 
  

   greater 
  number 
  of 
  these 
  were 
  eaten 
  in 
  May. 
  Among 
  other 
  beetles 
  

   eaten, 
  the 
  dung 
  beetles 
  and 
  other 
  scavengers 
  of 
  the 
  family 
  Scarabxidde 
  

   are 
  of 
  little 
  economic 
  interest, 
  and 
  together 
  with 
  the 
  leaf 
  chafers 
  of 
  the 
  

   same 
  family 
  they 
  comprise 
  a 
  little 
  over 
  1 
  percent 
  of 
  the 
  food 
  of 
  the 
  } 
  r 
  ear. 
  

   All 
  the 
  leaf 
  chafers, 
  however, 
  which 
  include 
  the 
  June 
  bugs 
  (fig. 
  4) 
  

  

  