626 
for drinking and bathing, and a constant 
supply of water near the farmhouse will 
materially aid in attracting birds to the 
neighborhood and in keeping them there, 
at least till the time of migration. Shal- 
low trays of wood or metal admirably 
serve the purpose, especially as birds de- 
light to bathe in them. 
Considerable success has been met with 
in Germany and elsewhere in Europe by 
supplying artificial nest boxes for birds, 
and the same method of increasing the 
number of birds and attracting them to 
farms and orchards where their services 
are most needed should be extensively 
employed in this country. The experi- 
ment can the more easily be tried since 
several firms in the United States are 
now prepared to make and deliver boxes 
specially designed for martins, swallows, 
bluebirds, wrens, woodpeckers, and other 
species. The average farmer’s boy, how- 
ever, if provided with a few tools, is quite 
equal to the task of making acceptable 
boxes for the commoner species, which 
are far from fastidious as to the appear- 
ance of the box intended for their oc- 
cupancy. 
One of the worst foes of our native 
birds is the house cat, and probably none 
of our native wild animals destroys as 
many birds on the farm, particularly 
fledglings, as cats. The household pet is 
by no means blameless in this respect, 
for the bird-hunting instinct is strong 
even in the well-fed tabby: but much of 
the loss of our feathered life is attribut- 
able to the halfstarved stray, which in 
summer is as much at home in the groves 
and fields as the birds themselves. 
Forced to forage for their own livelihood, 
these animals, which are almost as wild 
as the ancestral wildcat, inflict an ap- 
palling loss on our feathered allies and 
even on the smaller game birds like the 
‘woodcock and bobwhite. If cats are to 
find place in the farmer’s household 
every effort should be made by careful 
feeding and watching them to insure the 
safety of the birds. The cat without a 
home should be mercifully put out of the 
way. 
In the present article 50 of our com- 
ENCYCLOPEDIA OF PRACTICAL HORTICULTURE 
moner birds are discussed, including 
some that are destructive. They inhabit 
various parts of the country, and jit is 
for the interest of the farmers of the re- 
spective localities to be familiar with 
them. The accounts of the birds’ habits 
are necessarily brief, but they are be- 
lieved to bé sufficient to acquaint the 
reader with the most prominent charac- 
teristics of the several species, at least 
from the standpoint of their relation to 
man. 
Bluebird 
Sialia sialis 
Length,* about six and one-half inches. 
Range 
Breeds in the United States (west to 
Arizona, Colorado, Wyoming, and Mon- 
tana), Southern Canada, Mexico, and 
Gautemala; winters in the southern half 
of the Hastern United States and south 
to Gautemala. 
Habits and Economie Status 
The bluebird is one of the most 
familiar tenants of the farm and door- 
yard. This bird, like the robin, phoebe, 
house wren, and some swallows, is very 
domestic in its habits. Its favorite nest- 
ing sites are crannies in the farm build- 
ings or boxes made for its use or natural 
cavities in old apple trees. For rent the 
bird pays amply by destroying insects, 
and it takes no toll from the farm crop. 
The bluebird’s diet consists of 68 per 
cent of insects to 32 per cent of vege- 
table matter. The largest items of in- 
sect food are grasshoppers first and 
beetles next, while caterpillars stand third. 
All of these are harmful except a few 
of the beetles. The vegetable food con- 
sists chiefly of fruit pulp, only an in- 
Significant portion of which is of cul- 
tivated varieties. Among wild fruits el- 
derberries are the favorite. From the 
above it will be seen that the bluebird 
does no essential harm, but eats many 
harmful and annoying insects. 
Robin 
Planesticus migratorvus 
Length, 10 inches. 
* Measured from tip of bill to tip of tail 
