GARDEN FRIENDS. 



117 



Crows.— There are several species of this 

 group, which, under certain conditions, are of 

 decided advantage in gardens or enclosures. 

 The Common Rook (Corvus frugilegus) feeds 

 largely upon wire worms, grubs of the cock- 

 chafer, leather-jackets, or the larvae of Daddy 

 Long-legs, slugs, and the grubs of other insects. 

 It should, therefore, be encouraged within the 

 precincts of pleasure-grounds and gardens. The 

 Jackdaw {Corvus monedula) is similarly service- 

 able, and being very easily tamed, may be kept 

 about the garden, provided it does not prove 

 mischievous. The Chough or Red-legged Crow 

 {Fregilus graculus) may be distinguished from 

 the Jackdaw by having red legs. It is confined 

 to the rocky coasts of the south and west, and 

 the Isle of Man, in a wild state, but specimens 

 if procurable may be tamed and kept in the 

 garden. Beetles, grasshoppers, grubs of the 

 fern-chafer, and various small insects constitute 

 its food, and these it searches for with diligence. 

 The conical or wedge-shaped beak of these birds 

 enables them to dig into the soil for grubs, and 

 the rook uses this power to great advantage. 

 A wing should be clipped to prevent the tamed 

 birds from straying, for a time at least. 



Cuckoo (Cuculus canorus). — Here we have a 

 summer visitor staying with us from April to 

 July, and young ones sometimes till August. 

 In its feeding it is wholly insectivorous, living 

 chiefly on caterpillars, and the female lays her 

 eggs in the nests of insectivorous birds, such as 

 the Meadow Pipit and the Hedge-sparrow, but 

 sometimes in those of the finches. Gardens 

 and orchards are amongst its favourite haunts, 

 so that it is really a valuable bird. 



Finches. — These are essentially granivorous 

 birds, and some of them prove troublesome to 

 seed-beds in spring and other times of scarcity, 

 but may be kept off by netting. The Chaffinch 

 (Fringilla ccelebs) feeds largely upon loopers — the 

 caterpillars of certain moths — during summer, 

 and is both common and widely distributed. 

 The Goldfinch (Carduelis elegans) is less common, 

 but frequents gardens, and, like the Siskin (G. 

 spinus), it feeds largely on the seeds of thistles, 

 ragworts, and other composites, thus helping 

 to prevent the spread of bad weeds. 



Fly-catchers. — The two British species, the 

 Spotted (Mwcicapa grisola) and the Pied Fly- 

 catcher (M. luctuosa), are not so common as they 

 used and ought to be, for they feed upon insects 

 chiefly, catching them upon the wing. They 

 frequent gardens, especially the first-named. 



Gulls. — Two at least of our British gulls are 

 well known for their habits of following the 



plough in autumn, winter, and spring, particu- 

 larly when driven inland through stress of 

 weather at sea. They feed largely on the larvae 

 known as leather-jackets of Daddy Long-legs 

 and other grubs. One of them at least, the 

 Common Gull (Lams canus), is tamable, and 

 often kept in gardens and about homesteads, 

 where it associates with the poultry in winter 

 for the sake of food, but no other liking, as it 

 loves to sojourn by itself in the garden in quest 

 of food during open weather, and delights in 

 the presence of rocks and water. The Black- 

 headed or Laughing Gull (Larus ridibundus) is 

 the other common species that often roams 

 inland during the day, and follows the plough 

 in spring. It is a handsome bird in its breeding- 

 plumage, and is probably as readily tamable as 

 its congener. 



Hedge-sparrow or Accentor (Accentor 

 modularis). — This belongs to the Titmouse family, 

 though of a dull-brown, and unattractive. It 

 frequents hedges and shrubberies about houses 

 and gardens, and builds its nest there, the 

 beautiful bluish -green eggs being known to 

 every school-boy. Its food consists of insects 

 and the smaller members of the snail family. 



Lapwing or Pewit (Vanellus cristatus). — 

 Every rustic is acquainted with this beautiful 

 bird, which used to be so common all over 

 Britain in the fields, before the inroads of 

 cultivation and the collecting of the eggs for 

 sale, severely thinned its numbers. It feeds 

 upon leather -jackets, wire worms, and similar 

 grubs, consuming about a hundred a day. It is 

 easily tamed, and often kept in gardens to great 

 advantage. A wing should be clipped, as in the 

 case of the gulls, until it gets habituated to its 

 surroundings at least. 



Magpie (Pica melanoleuca). — Though a shy 

 bird, on account of the persecution it receives 

 from gamekeepers in Britain, it is as readily 

 tamable as the crows, to which it is closely 

 allied, for in Norway the wild birds hop about 

 the doors, and even enter the houses when open, 

 because unmolested. They feed on mice, voles, 

 surface caterpillars, and others, and might be 

 made useful in gardens, if tamed. 



Owls. — There are several British species, of 

 which three are common and useful, because 

 mice, voles, or short-tailed field-mice, and young 

 rats constitute their principal food. The White, 

 or Barn Owl (Strix flammed) is the most common, 

 and lives in outhouses, holes in rocks, in ivy, 

 and even in the dove-cot, where it has been 

 known to live on friendly terms with the 

 pigeons, neither giving nor receiving molesta- 



