A-ak, XII, July, 1896, Sp. 3*3-4. 
Strange Habits of the Rusty and Crow Blackbirds. — Since the 
unparalleled cold of the past winter throughout the Southern States, 
we have heard and read of many instances of the great destruction 
among our smaller birds ; and the unusual scarcity of a number of out- 
common spring migrants, both in the east and west, only demonstrates 
too clearly the larger numbers which must have perished in their winter 
home. The most remarkable instance of which I have learned, evidently 
brought about by the deep snows cutting off the food supply of some 
species, is the preying of the Rusty and Crow Blackbirds on other 
species for food. 
I am very much indebted to my friend Mr. Jesse N. Cummings of 
Anahuac, Texas, for the following interesting letter on this subject. 
Anahuac is in ‘Chambers Co., at the head of Trinity Bay, and north of 
Galveston. “March 24, 1895. In the first place snow exceeding the 
depth of two or three inches was never known before in this section 
of the country, until this storm which commenced the 14th of February 
and lasted for about thirty hours, covering the ground to a depth of 
twenty inches on a level and remaining at about that depth for three 
or four days before it commenced to thaw, and then it was three or 
four days more before the snow had entirely disappeared. I have on 
my place an artesian well which has a temperature of about 70° and 
a flow of 60,000 gallons per twenty-four hours. This kept a large piece 
of ground on the bay shore free from snow and was the only place in 
the country where a Jack Snipe ( Gallinago delicata) could warm his 
toes or get anything to eat. I did not notice the first Snipe that came in, 
as it was the second day after the snow-storm that my attention was 
directed to them, and when I went down to see them I should say that 
there were at least two hundred birds on a space not over one hundred 
feet square. It did not take me long to get my gun and kill about 
forty in a short space of time, as you could hardly drive them away, 
and as fast as they were flushed would shortly return. I could have 
shot them every day for a w-eek had I cared to. At this small open 
piece of ground, the Rusty and Crow Blackbirds had collected, but 
I did not see them kill many Snipe the first day or two, but the third 
and fourth days they just went for them. I should say that I saw 
them actually kill ten or twelve Snipe on the ground where the snow 
had melted, but there were thirty or forty dead ones that I saw in other 
p laces. The Rusty Blackbirds were the principle aggressors, and it 
was astonishing to see how quickly they could attack and lay out a 
Snipe or Robin. Both species were killed while on the ground and 
the Blackbirds would only eat the head, or as near as I could see, the 
brain, while the body was left untouched. 
“Up around my house they attacked the Robins and I have no idea 
how many they did kill, but you could see them lying around every- 
where on the snow, and it was the same way all up and down the bay 
shore. I presume they killed other species of birds but I did not notice 
any. I cannot account for this sudden change in the Blackbirds’ habits 
except from lack of any other kind of food and they made the best of 
what v'as at hand.” 
If any of the other readers of ‘The Auk’ have heard of any rapacious 
traits in the character of our Blackbirds, I hope they will give us the 
benefit of their experience. — Ruthven Deane, Chicago, III. 
