18 BULLETIN 280, U. 8. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 
proved that they thrive best when fed small quantities at short in- 
tervals rather than greater quantities at longer periods. Aside from 
the insects consumed by the parents, a brood of three young birds will 
thus each require the destruction of at least 144 insects in a day and 
probably a very much greater number. 
Summary.—tin a résumé of the food of the olive-backed and russet- 
backed thrushes one is impressed with the fact that they come in 
contact with the products of industry but rarely. The olive-back’s 
food habits infringe upon the dominion of man but little. The bird 
lives among men, but not with them. The western form, the russet- 
back, comes more into relations with the cultivated products because 
it visits orchards and partakes freely of the fruit. Even then the 
damage is slight, as much of the fruit eaten is that fallen to the 
ground. Moreover, while the adult bird is feeding upon fruit a 
nestful of young are being reared upon insects which must be largely 
taken from the orchard, thus not only squaring the account but 
probably overbalancing it in favor of the farmer. 
HERMIT THRUSHES. 
(Hylocichla guttata subspp. ) 
The hermit thrush of the subspecies H. g. pallasi inhabits the 
Eastern States in winter as far north as Massachusetts and breeds 
from the mountains of Maryland and Pennsylvania and from north- 
ern Michigan and central Minnesota northward to Alaska. Several 
other subspecies occupy the Pacific coast region in suitable locali- 
ties—that is, in the higher and more wooded sections, as this bird, 
like all of the genus Hylocichla, does not live in treeless or arid regions. 
In the East the bird is a late fall migrant and may often be seen. 
sitting silent and alone on a branch in the forest in late October 
or even in November, when the great army of migrants have passed 
on to the South. While a beautiful songster, the species is so quiet 
and unobtrusive that by sight it is entirely unknown to many. 
Inquiry into the food habits of this bird covered 551 stomachs, 
collected in 29 States, the District of Columbia, and Canada, and 
representing every month of the year, though all the stomachs 
taken in winter were collected in the Southern States the District 
of Columbia, and California. In the primary analysis the food 
was found to consist of 64.51 per cent of animal matter to 35.49 per 
cent of vegetable. The former is mostly composed of insects with 
some spiders, while the latter is largely fruit, chiefly wild species. 
Animal food—Beetles constitute 15.13 per cent of the food. Of 
these 2.98 per cent are of the useful family, Carabidae. The remain- 
der are mostly harmful. Scarabeide, the larvee of which are the 
