THE CKOW AND ITS RELATION TO MAN. 83 
is not satisfactorily known. The fact that they are terrestrial in 
their feeding eliminates from their diet many of the injurious plant- 
feeding and flying-insect pests, while most of the beneficial, pre- 
dacious forms are subject to their attack. Thus their destruction 
by the crow can be considered only partially prejudicial to the in- 
terests of man. 
Ceustaceans 
The consumption of crustaceans must be classed among the minor 
benefits conferred by the crow. While much of this food is picked up 
as carrion along beaches or river banks, a considerable number of 
crawfish fall as the crow's prey in portions of the South where these 
creatures are abundant and destructive. 
Reptiles and Amphibians. 
Feeding on the smaller snakes and lizards must be charged against 
the crow, but by the destruction of a few larger, more or less arboreal 
serpents the bird compensates for some of its own misdemeanors 
against nesting birds. While it is impossible to determine the exact 
extent of the crow's predacious activities against the larger snakes, 
it follows that in the consumption of any such material the bird 
confers a benefit either as a carnivore or scavenger. Most of the 
large turtles eaten probably are carrion, while the smaller ones are 
frequently captured alive. 
The crow's destruction of the highly insectivorous amphibians, 
especially toads and frogs, is to be deplored. Such work is opposed 
to the best interests of man, but, fortunately, toads, which come most 
intimately in contact with insect pests of garden and field, are less 
frequently eaten than frogs. 
Wild Birds and Their Eggs. 
The crow's destruction of wild birds and their eggs is a noxious 
trait of no small importance. It is somewhat mitigated, however, 
by the fact that most of the depredations on eggs occur early enough 
in the season to permit the raising of a second brood at a time when 
there is little or no danger from crows. To this fact alone can be 
attributed the ability of some waterfowl to maintain their numbers 
in regions where they are regularly subject to attack. The destruc- 
tion of nestling birds of highly beneficial species is not to be con- 
doned and constitutes one of the strongest arguments against the 
crow. On game farms, preserves, and in suburban districts where 
it is the desire to foster small birds, the crow population must be 
kept within limited numbers. Sufficient cover also must be left for 
woodland game birds. 
