140 
The. wild pie is certainly highly destructive to tapioca and other 
uberous-rooted plants/ but I never heard of its injuring coffee 
rees and doubt that it would dig them up. If it confines its 
attention to the grubs in the estate it might well be encouraged. 
Birds of course will destroy Icirge numbers of tliese 3.nd other in 
sects, and as the cockchafers, like most of the heavy beetles, fly 
in the evening, our nocturnal birds will be our stioiigest allies. 
No planter, it is to be hoped, will shoot the night-jar (Buroiig 
Iukang Kayu) Cafirimulgus Macrurus , or the Tiptibau ( Lyncor - 
nis), nor any of the owls, the small kinds of which are great 
insect-eaters. rj r . 
The common night-jar seems to be absent often from the 
wooded districts at least for a great part of the year. This is 
doubtless due to its habit of nesting among bracken which is 
'ften wanting in the wooded districts. In foiest distiicts the 
iptibau takes its place, but I doubt that it is as valuable, as it 
es much higher and feeds on insects which fly high which 
>etles as a rule do not do. 
BIRDS ESPECIALLY TTSEFUL IN DESTROYING 
INSECTS. 
It may be useful to call attention to the commoner birds which 
e of great value in destroying insects and which should be care- 
lly protected by planters. 
The value of msec ivorous birds cannot be too highly rated, 
deed, were it not for them the hordes of caterpillars, beetles, 
rmites, and grasshoppers would be quite unmanageable, 
its being so, the insectivorous birds about a plantation should 
A be shot or molested, and trees should be planted, where ncces- 
iry, for them to roost and nest in and shade themselves from 
\q great heat of the middle of the day. Where there are no 
ees large enough for them, as is often the case in coffee and 
•gar plantations, one sees but few birds, and I have seen in 
xch estates the coffee trees quite eaten up by the caterpillars of 
various moths especially that of the very destructive bee-hawk. 
The eagles and hawks, except in the case of sugar estates 
where they destroy rats and mice, are likely to do more harm 
than good bv destroying the insectivorous birds, but an excep- 
tion must be made in the useful little falconet ( Microhierax frin- 
gillarius), a very small hawk no bigger than a black and white 
robin. It is black and white and may often be seen sitting on 
th e topmost twig of a dead bough, darting off from time to time on 
its insect prey. It destroys grasshoppers, butterflies and moths. 
Of owls there are several kinds, from the large Ashing owl (Ke- 
tur>a javanensis ) to the little scops owls. The larger kinds eat 
m ; ce and fruit bats. The smaller ones beetles and moths. The 
nipht-jars, or goat-suckers, “Tiptibau” and the “Burong 
Tu’kang Kayu,” are very valuable assistants, destroying large 
* u an titles of evening flying moths and beetles. The swallows 
eat .email insects of various kinds especially winged white-ants. 
