OEIOLES AND BLACKBIRDS. 59 



* 



Clinton, and Delight, and I found it fairly common at Stuttgart, 

 Conway, Mammoth Spring, Camden, and Wilmot. At the latter 

 place, young just out of the nest were observed June 24. The species 

 seems to be rather rare in the mountainous sections of the State. I 

 noticed only one bird at Mena, and there are no records for the 

 Ozark region except at Clinton, where it is reported rare. Orioles 

 are mainly insectivorous in their diet, and among the good quali- 

 ties of these very useful birds is their pronounced liking for boll 

 weevils. Investigations in the cotton fields of Texas and Louisiana 

 showed that nearly one-third of the stomachs of this species collected 

 there contained remains of this pest. 



Baltimore Oriole. Icterus galbula. 



This handsome oriole is fairly common locally in summer, mainly 

 in the eastern part of the State. It is reported common at Helena, 

 where it arrives from the south about April 10 (earliest date, April 4). 

 At Clinton it is given as a rare breeder, at Hopefleld as tolerably com- 

 mon, 1 and it is reported as breeding at Newport, Big Lake, and Pea 

 Ridge. I found the species at Stuttgart (May 14), Mammoth Spring 

 (June 15), and a few other places in the eastern part of the State, but 

 nowhere was it common. At Delight it is a rare migrant, first seen in 

 autumn on September 1. The food of this oriole consists mainly of 

 insects, and caterpillars form a large part. Like the other orioles, it 

 is an important enemy of the boll weevil. A little fruit is included in 

 its diet, but not enough to counterbalance its usefulness as an insect- 

 destroyer. 



Rusty Blackbird. Euphagus carolinus. 



The rusty blackbird is a northern-breeding species and occurs only 

 in migration and as a winter resident. Hollister reports it common 

 near Stuttgart in winter, and Pleas gives it as a migrant at Clinton, 

 seen November 5, 1889. Hanna noted a flock of 10 at Van Buren on 

 December 17 and collected several specimens on that date and 1 on 

 January 7. This blackbird forages mainly in pastures and swamps, 

 where it destroys many noxious insects. In winter it eats some grain, 

 most of which is probably waste picked up in the fields. 



Brewer Blackbird. Euphagus cyanocephalus. 



This blackbird is the western representative of the rusty and ranges 

 east in winter casually to Arkansas and Louisiana. Hollister reports 

 a few seen in winter on the prairie at Stuttgart in company with rusty 

 blackbirds. 2 Savage noted a flock of 13 at Delight November 17, and 

 2 birds on January 5. 



i Hay, O. P., Bull. Nutt. Orn. Club, VII, p. 92, 1882. 

 2 Wilson Bull., IX, p. 14, 1902. 



