4 - 
The Killdeer 
cotton -growing districts. It is also especially effective in holamg in check 
the Rocky Mountain locust, having received special mention in the 
government report on that destructive insect. 
In Bulletin No. 25, United States Department of Agriculture, the 
government expert, Arthur H. Howell, says: " The Killdeer frequents plowed 
fields, often in large numbers, and the destruction of weevils at the period ■ 
of spring plowing is a highly important service.’^ 
We find that the Killdeer is of great value aesthetically by reason of its 
beauty and interesting personality; it is of extreme value economically ! 
because it destroys enormous numbers of insects, two kinds of which are 1 
costing the agriculturists of the country millions of dollars annually; it is 
practically worthless for food owing to its small size, and no self-respecting j 
sportsman ever shoots one. Let me quote from a quaint old volume r 
published in 1848 by that prince of sportsmen, Frank Forester, who, at the L 
end of his chapter on the Plovers, adds these few words: "In addition to ' 
these we have the well-known, common and beautiful variety, the Killdeer • 
Plover, so named from its peculiar cry, which it is both cruel and useless to . 
kill, as it is too insignificant to be regarded as game." Let the public give f\ 
the Killdeer the appreciation and protection it richly deserves. 
Questions for Teachers and Students 
How are feet of Plover different from those of other birds? Is the Killdeer found in your 0 
locality? At what season of the year? What is meaning of pyriform? What is a clutch ? f 
What is the meaning of incubation ? What is the meaning of simulate ? What are cole- 
optera? Describe the boll-weevil and its transformation. In what way is it destructive to ■ 
cotton? Describe the Rocky Mountain locust and the damage it does. Use available i 
questions in previous leaflets. Read excellent papers on the Killdeer in Bird-Lore, Vol. I, . 
page 35 and Vol. II, page 148; also ” How to Study Birds,’' Vol. V, page 89. 
Reprinted from Bird-Loke, December, iqo 6. Teachers, Students and other personsmay obtain additional copies 4 
of this and the other Educational Leaflets, with illustrations and outlines, issued by the National Association of I 
Audubon Societies, by applyi-ng to the Office, No. 141 Broadway, New York City. 
