﻿16 
  BIRDS 
  THAT 
  EAT 
  THE 
  COTTON 
  BOLL 
  WEEVIL. 
  

  

  CONDITIONS 
  OF 
  BIRD 
  LXFE 
  IN 
  THE 
  SUMMER 
  OF 
  1905. 
  

  

  Birds 
  were 
  abundant 
  at 
  only 
  two 
  localities 
  visited 
  in 
  the 
  summer 
  of 
  

   1905. 
  At 
  three 
  localities 
  they 
  were 
  moderately 
  numerous, 
  while 
  at 
  

   five 
  localities 
  they 
  were 
  very 
  scarce. 
  During 
  the- 
  month 
  of 
  July, 
  

   which 
  includes 
  the 
  last 
  part 
  of 
  the 
  breeding 
  season 
  of 
  most 
  species, 
  

   they 
  were 
  scarce 
  at 
  all 
  localities 
  visited. 
  At 
  Gurley, 
  Texas, 
  on 
  July 
  20, 
  

   a 
  count 
  was 
  made 
  of 
  all 
  the 
  birds 
  seen 
  to 
  visit 
  a 
  large 
  cotton 
  field 
  in 
  

   the 
  river 
  bottom, 
  bordered 
  on 
  two 
  sides 
  with 
  woods 
  and 
  thickets. 
  

   Forty 
  individuals 
  of 
  10 
  species 
  were 
  noted 
  in 
  about 
  six 
  hours 
  in 
  the 
  

   area 
  under 
  observation, 
  which 
  included 
  about 
  100 
  acres. 
  This 
  result 
  

   is 
  fairly 
  typical 
  of 
  conditions 
  prevailing 
  in 
  other 
  localities 
  visited 
  

   during 
  the 
  same 
  month, 
  except 
  in 
  regions 
  where 
  the 
  presence 
  of 
  cot- 
  

   ton 
  worms 
  offered 
  an 
  especially 
  attractive 
  food 
  supply. 
  

  

  The 
  greater 
  part 
  of 
  August 
  and 
  September 
  was 
  spent 
  at 
  two 
  locali- 
  

   ties 
  in 
  the 
  arid 
  mesquite 
  belt 
  of 
  Texas 
  — 
  Beeville 
  and 
  Runge 
  — 
  and 
  

   here 
  birds, 
  both 
  resident 
  species 
  and 
  migrants, 
  proved 
  to 
  be 
  abun- 
  

   dant. 
  Between 
  September 
  23 
  and 
  October 
  20 
  a 
  number 
  of 
  different 
  

   localities 
  were 
  visited, 
  from 
  Medina 
  County 
  on 
  the 
  west 
  to 
  Waller 
  and 
  

   Grimes 
  counties 
  on 
  the 
  east, 
  and 
  at 
  every 
  place 
  a 
  marked 
  scarcity 
  of 
  

   bird 
  life 
  in 
  and 
  about 
  the 
  cotton 
  fields 
  was 
  noted. 
  Peculiarities 
  in 
  

   the 
  distribution 
  of 
  the 
  food 
  supply, 
  not 
  as 
  yet 
  well 
  understood, 
  proba- 
  

   bly 
  account 
  in 
  a 
  measure 
  for 
  this 
  scarcity. 
  The 
  tendency 
  of 
  certain 
  

   species 
  of 
  birds 
  after 
  the 
  breeding 
  season 
  to 
  wander 
  in 
  search 
  of 
  food 
  is 
  

   quite 
  pronounced. 
  This 
  habit 
  is 
  well 
  illustrated 
  by 
  observations 
  on 
  

   the 
  varying 
  abundance 
  of 
  cuckoos, 
  mentioned 
  later. 
  

  

  SUMMARY 
  OF 
  OBSERVATIONS 
  IN 
  1905. 
  

  

  Cuero, 
  July 
  6-7. 
  — 
  At 
  this 
  time 
  the 
  cotton 
  plants 
  were 
  in 
  fine 
  con- 
  

   dition, 
  3 
  to 
  4 
  feet 
  high 
  and 
  full 
  of 
  blossoms 
  and 
  bolls. 
  Weevils 
  were 
  

   very 
  scarce, 
  some 
  fields 
  being 
  moderately 
  infested 
  and 
  others 
  not 
  at 
  

   all. 
  No 
  adult 
  weevils 
  could 
  be 
  found, 
  and 
  the 
  average 
  number 
  of 
  

   larvse 
  in 
  fallen 
  squares 
  was 
  about 
  12 
  to 
  every 
  100 
  hills. 
  

  

  Birds 
  were 
  not 
  abundant, 
  and 
  practically 
  the 
  only 
  species 
  seen 
  feed- 
  

   ing 
  among 
  the 
  cotton 
  plants 
  was 
  the 
  orchard 
  oriole. 
  Of 
  this 
  species 
  

   only 
  one 
  small 
  flock 
  was 
  seen, 
  and 
  but 
  one 
  of 
  those 
  taken 
  had 
  eaten 
  a 
  

   boll 
  weevil. 
  

  

  Gurley, 
  July 
  10-22. 
  — 
  Cotton 
  was 
  in 
  about 
  the 
  same 
  condition 
  here 
  

   as 
  at 
  Cuero 
  the 
  previous 
  week, 
  perhaps 
  a 
  little 
  less 
  advanced. 
  

  

  Weevils 
  were 
  more 
  abundant 
  than 
  at 
  Cuero, 
  though 
  it 
  was 
  practi- 
  

   cally 
  impossible 
  to 
  find 
  adults. 
  Forty 
  hills 
  in 
  the 
  worst 
  infested 
  fields 
  

   were 
  carefully 
  searched 
  without 
  finding 
  a 
  single 
  individual. 
  Exami- 
  

   nation 
  of 
  all 
  the 
  fallen 
  squares 
  under 
  20 
  hills 
  produced 
  34 
  larvse, 
  4 
  

   of 
  which 
  were 
  dead. 
  

  

  Birds 
  were 
  fairly 
  common, 
  and 
  the 
  following 
  species 
  were 
  seen 
  in 
  the 
  

   cotton 
  fields: 
  Quail, 
  downy 
  woodpecker, 
  scissor-tailed 
  flycatcher, 
  

  

  