i8 



the majority of birds : — " A constant war is," he says, " being 

 carried on between the insect world and the vegetable kingdom. 

 The laws of nature would keep the balance about evenly 

 adjusted. But man requires that it should be inclined in 

 favour of the plants he cultivates for his own use. To obtain 

 this end it is necessary that we should carefully protect and 

 encourage all the forces that will work on our side against our 

 insect enemies, and while they are not the only ones, yet the 

 birds are the most important allies we can have in the struggle. 

 We cannot very well increase their number or efficiency by any 

 artificial means, but we can protect them from such of their 

 natural enemies as occur in our own neighbourhood and we can 

 encourage them to remain and breed about our farms and 

 gardens." 



POST-MORTEM RECORDS, FIELD NOTES, &c. 



Blackbird (Turdus merula, Linn.). 



1. Male ; I nee, Chester ; 6th January, 1894 ; taken at 

 night. — Practically filled with berries of the hawthorn ; re- 

 mains of a large beetle (Carabus violaceus) ; two No. 6 gunshots 

 taken in lieu of pebbles ; angular fragments of brick. 



2. Male; Ince, Chester,; 22nd January, 1894. — Almost 

 filled with fruit of the apple ; 3 shells of Helix caperata. 



3. Male; Ince, Chester ; 2nd February, 1895. — Filled with 

 berries of the hawthorn. 



4. Female ; Ince, Chester ; 6th February, 1895. — Small 

 land shells (1 Cochlicopa lubrica, 2 Zonites nitidulus) ; 2 ova 

 of the earthworm. 



5. Male ; Ince, Chester ; 6th February, 1895. — Fruit of the 

 apple ; fragments of a small dark coloured weevil (Curculi- 

 onidae). 



6. Female; Ince, Chester; 6th February, 1895. — Garbage 

 from kitchen midden : bread, egg shells, ashes, &c. ; a few 

 grains of wheat. 



7. Female; Ince, Chester; 6th February, 1895. — Fruits of 

 the apple and 1 shell of Helix caperata. 



8. Female ; near Chester ; yth June, 1889. — A few weevils 

 (Curculionidse) and small dung beetles (Aphodii). Much too 

 fragmentary to enable one to determine them with any degree 

 of certainty. 



