﻿20 
  BIRDS 
  THAT 
  EAT 
  THE 
  COTTON 
  BOLL 
  WEEVIL. 
  

  

  of 
  the 
  food 
  of 
  many 
  species, 
  notably 
  the 
  cuckoos, 
  orioles, 
  and 
  mock- 
  

   ingbirds, 
  which 
  were 
  the 
  commonest 
  birds 
  in 
  the 
  fields. 
  The 
  con- 
  

   sumption 
  of 
  weevils 
  by 
  the 
  birds 
  therefore 
  was 
  probably 
  less 
  than 
  

   it 
  would 
  have 
  been 
  had 
  there 
  been 
  no 
  cotton 
  worms. 
  

  

  Nine 
  species 
  of 
  birds 
  were 
  found 
  feeding 
  on 
  weevils 
  in 
  this 
  locality, 
  

   52 
  individuals, 
  or 
  more 
  than 
  12 
  percent 
  of 
  those 
  examined, 
  having 
  

   eaten 
  a 
  total 
  of 
  88 
  weevils. 
  As 
  in 
  other 
  localities 
  visited, 
  orioles 
  were 
  

   the 
  greatest 
  consumers 
  of 
  weevils, 
  although 
  the 
  proportion 
  of 
  weevils 
  

   to 
  birds 
  killed 
  was 
  larger 
  in 
  the 
  records 
  of 
  the 
  nighthawk 
  and 
  of 
  the 
  

   least 
  flycatcher. 
  

  

  The 
  nighthawk 
  (Chordeiles 
  virginianus 
  Jienryi) 
  was 
  quite 
  numerous, 
  

   but 
  unfortunately 
  it 
  was 
  not 
  suspected 
  of 
  eating 
  weevils, 
  so 
  that 
  only 
  

   four 
  specimens 
  were 
  taken. 
  Of 
  these, 
  2 
  had 
  eaten 
  weevils 
  ; 
  one 
  col- 
  

   lected 
  on 
  August 
  25 
  had 
  eaten 
  6, 
  and 
  one 
  on 
  September 
  15, 
  one 
  wee- 
  

   vil. 
  The 
  first 
  of 
  these 
  was 
  shot 
  while 
  flying 
  over 
  a 
  cotton 
  field, 
  the 
  

   other 
  while 
  resting 
  on 
  a 
  tree, 
  both 
  at 
  about 
  10 
  a. 
  m. 
  In 
  the 
  first 
  

   instance 
  2 
  of 
  the 
  6 
  weevils 
  were 
  almost 
  entire, 
  showing 
  that 
  they 
  had 
  

   been 
  captured 
  only 
  a 
  short 
  time 
  before. 
  Since 
  these 
  birds 
  invariably 
  

   feed 
  on 
  the 
  wing, 
  the 
  weevils 
  must 
  have 
  been 
  flying 
  at 
  the 
  time 
  they 
  

   were 
  captured. 
  

  

  The 
  least 
  flycatcher 
  was 
  present 
  in 
  small 
  numbers, 
  and 
  4 
  individuals 
  

   were 
  taken, 
  2 
  of 
  which 
  had 
  eaten 
  weevils 
  — 
  one 
  eating 
  4, 
  the 
  other, 
  one. 
  

   The 
  scissor-tailed 
  flycatcher, 
  a 
  much 
  more 
  abundant 
  species, 
  cap- 
  

   tured 
  only 
  a 
  small 
  number 
  of 
  weevils.- 
  Of 
  the 
  30 
  individuals 
  collected, 
  

   2 
  had 
  eaten 
  a 
  total 
  of 
  3 
  weevils. 
  

  

  Three 
  species 
  of 
  orioles 
  were 
  present 
  at 
  this 
  locality 
  — 
  the 
  orchard 
  

   oriole, 
  the 
  Baltimore 
  oriole, 
  and 
  the 
  Bullock 
  oriole, 
  the 
  last 
  being 
  the 
  

   most 
  abundant 
  and 
  also 
  the 
  greatest 
  destroyer 
  of 
  weevils. 
  Of 
  30 
  

   orchard 
  orioles 
  examined, 
  7 
  had 
  eaten 
  a 
  total 
  of 
  8 
  weevils. 
  In 
  this 
  

   portion 
  of 
  Texas 
  the 
  Baltimore 
  oriole 
  is 
  a 
  migrant 
  only. 
  The 
  first 
  

   arrivals 
  from 
  the 
  North 
  were 
  seen 
  on 
  September 
  13, 
  and 
  during 
  the 
  

   next 
  ten 
  days 
  they 
  were 
  common. 
  Five 
  of 
  those 
  examined 
  had 
  eaten 
  a 
  

   total 
  of 
  9 
  weevils. 
  The 
  Bullock 
  oriole 
  is 
  a 
  common 
  breeder 
  here, 
  and 
  

   they 
  were 
  still 
  numerous 
  at 
  the 
  time 
  of 
  the 
  writer's 
  departure. 
  

   Although 
  partial 
  to 
  mesquite 
  trees, 
  they 
  were 
  occasionally 
  seen 
  in 
  cot- 
  

   ton 
  fields, 
  and 
  the 
  stomach 
  examinations 
  show 
  that 
  about 
  one-fourth 
  

   of 
  those 
  killed 
  had 
  eaten 
  weevils. 
  In 
  all, 
  27 
  stomachs 
  of 
  this 
  bird 
  were 
  

   found 
  to 
  contain 
  a 
  total 
  of 
  51 
  weevils, 
  the 
  largest 
  number 
  eaten 
  by 
  a 
  

   single 
  bird 
  being 
  5. 
  The 
  small 
  percentage 
  of 
  weevils 
  taken, 
  in 
  com- 
  

   parison 
  with 
  the 
  number 
  taken 
  bj- 
  the 
  same 
  species 
  at 
  Beeville, 
  is 
  

   explained 
  by 
  the 
  greater 
  abundance 
  of 
  cotton 
  worms 
  at 
  Runge. 
  

   Practically 
  all 
  the 
  orioles 
  of 
  the 
  three 
  species 
  taken 
  at 
  the 
  latter 
  place 
  

   had 
  eaten 
  either 
  the 
  caterpillars 
  or 
  the 
  chrysalids 
  of 
  the 
  cotton 
  worm, 
  

   and 
  these 
  insects 
  formed 
  more 
  than 
  80 
  percent 
  of 
  their 
  food. 
  

  

  Both 
  the 
  cardinal 
  and 
  the 
  painted 
  bunting 
  were 
  found 
  to 
  be 
  eating 
  

   the 
  weevils, 
  but 
  neither 
  species 
  was 
  abundant. 
  Four 
  cardinals 
  were 
  

  

  