2 
1914 when he observed a large flock of black birds in Panga- 
sinan, locally known by the name “martinez” (AEtheopsar 
cristatellus ), which settled upon a field in which great num¬ 
bers of locust eggs had been deposited. The field had been 
plowed in order to expose the eggs. These were voraciously 
devoured by the birds. Perhaps you, who read this, may 
have observed birds in their work of insect destruction, 
and if such is the case you would be serving the agricul¬ 
tural and general economic interests of the Islands by 
reporting your observations to the Bureau of Science, 
describing as fully as possible the particular kind of birds 
observed, giving color, size, local name, and any other details 
which may occur to you. It would also be valuable to know 
the class of insects attacked, the numbers disposed of, etc. 
From observations which I myself have made and from 
those reported to me by others, I believe that chickens and 
turkeys eagerly catch and eat locusts of all sizes, from the 
hopper to the adult. It can readily be seen that if every 
Filipino farmer will interest himself in increasing his 
poultry raising, there will be developed one of the most 
reliable and efficient methods of controlling the very de¬ 
structive locusts as well as many other injurious insects. 
It scarcely needs to be pointed out that poultry is an im¬ 
portant source of wealth. The possibilities of this industry 
cannot be realized by those who have not seen poultry farm¬ 
ing on a large scale. In some cases the fowls are raised for 
market and in other cases particular attention is paid to the 
production of eggs, for which there is always a demand at 
good prices. The Philippine Islands import many thou¬ 
sands of pesos worth of eggs a year which would not be 
necessary if poultry raising received more attention from 
the Filipino people. Domestic fowls, and especially turkeys, 
because of their greater size and much greater stomach 
capacity, are even more efficient than wild birds in the 
destruction of insects. Very few turkeys are raised in the 
Philippine Islands, and these bring fancy prices when of¬ 
fered for sale in the Manila markets. Young turkeys are 
sensitive to dampness and for this reason are usually con¬ 
sidered to be more difficult to raise than chickens. Young 
poultry of any kind should not be turned out while the grass • 
