case is shown by the fact that many birds of the same species have been shot at 

 the same time in a grainfield, and while some stomachs were full of grain, others 

 were only partly filled, and still others were wholly filled with other food. So 

 many cases of this kind have occurred that it seems practically certain that few 

 birds willingly subsist exclusively upon any kind of grain for a considerable 

 length of time. With many species this is in notable contrast to their marked 

 fondness for the seeds of certain useless plants, upon which at some seasons 

 they subsist almost entirely. 



*'If it be admitted that birds do not as a rule display an inordinate appetite 

 for grain, the question naturally arises : What is the cause of the tremendous 

 ravages they sometimes commit? Both stomach examination and field observa- 

 tion point to the same answer: Too many birds of the same or closely allied 

 species are gathered together within a limited area. 



"As already pointed out, the Upper Mississippi region presents such excep- 

 tionally favorable breeding grounds for Blackbirds, especially the Redwing and 

 Yellowhead, that they swarm there in countless numbers. Settlement and cultiva- 

 tion have not yet encroached materially upon their haunts, but have added a 

 source of food, which, coming before the great natural supply, has served to 

 render the race more vigorous and prolific. 



"An attempt to exterminate these species would be not only ill-advised but 

 hopeless. States have offered bounties for their destruction without perceptibly 

 thinning their ranks. Is there, then, any remedy for the evil? The writer is 

 forced to confess that he has none to suggest, except in the case of Crows and 

 Blackbirds that pull up sprouting corn. This can be prevented by thoroughly 

 tarring the seed, which, if properly done, neither injures its vitality nor prevents 

 the use of machinery in planting. There is, however, some hope for the future, 

 though perhaps a distant one. While the advance of civilization has thus far 

 not affected these birds or their haunts, the time must surely come when it will. 

 Increased density of population will broaden the area of cultivation, and this in 

 time must lead to the draining of the smaller marshes and ponds, thus turning 

 over to agriculture much land that has heretofore been worse than waste, since 

 it has served as a breeding ground for the birds that have destroyed the crops. 

 With the breeding places more restricted and an environment otherwise changed 

 by increased population, the number of birds must surely - decrease, and in time 

 the proper equilibrium will be restored. In the meantime, it behooves the farmer 

 to apply such remedies as the exigencies of the case suggest, and where these 

 gregarious species are over-abundant it might be well to exempt them from the 

 general protective laws, in order that each landholder may be free to protect him- 

 self as best he can." 



Crow Blackbird: Purple Crackle and Bronzed Crackle (Qutscalus 

 quiscula et oenetis). — "Crow Blackbirds are fond of grain, and being of good 

 size and abundant, evidently have the power to do great harm. Moreover, the 

 examination of more than 2,000 of their stomachs shows that grain formed 45 



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