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tents of the stomachs of six hundred and ninety-four House Sparrows. 
The dissections were made by twelve or more qualified observers (names 
given with the table referred to), in various places, at regular intervals 
throughout the whole year, the observations being recorded under the heads 
of “ Customary food ” and “ Occasional food.” 
Food of Adult Sparrows. 
January. Customary food. —Corn from stacks and poultry-yards; seeds 
of all kinds. Occasional food. —Refuse corn, maize, and capsules of moss. 
February. Customary food. —Corn from stacks and poultry-yards. 
Occasional food. —Seeds; buds of gooseberries. 
March. Customary food. —Corn, wherever they can get it. Occasional 
food. —Young tops of peas, radish, cabbage, and cauliflower; seeds, freshly 
sown barley, and oats. 
April. Customary food. —Corn; vegetable matter. Occasional food. — 
Freshly sown barley, and oats ; oblong green seeds, not identified; cater¬ 
pillars. 
May. Customary food. —Corn ; vegetable matter; seeds. Occasional 
food. —Young pea-pods and leaves of peas ; gooseberry blossoms and young 
gooseberries; small beetles; caterpillars of the Brimstone Moth, and White 
Cabbage Butterflies ; turnip seed; hay seed ; sprouts of young barley half 
an inch long; pollen of the sycamore and apple; mangold leaves. 
June. Customary food. — Corn; vegetable matter; seeds of various 
sorts; peas. Occasional food. —Gooseberries and other fruit; lettuces; small 
beetles ; mangold leaves. 
July. Customary food. —Young wheat, barley, and oats; vegetable 
matter; seeds of various weeds. Occasional food. —Peas ; small beetles ; 
beans ; seeds of wild spinach. 
August. Customary food. —Wheat, barley, oats. Occasional food. — 
Seeds of corn, bindweed, knotgrass, &c.; aphides, small beetles, Daddy 
Longlegs ( Tipula ), caterpillars of Ter as contaminana, moth of Cr ambus 
culmellus. 
September. Customary food. —Corn ; seeds of many kinds, especially 
the knot-grass, and corn bindweed. Occasional food. —Caterpillars ; berries ; 
seeds of plaintain. 
October. Customary food. —Grain, some of it refuse grain; seeds of 
many kinds, including knot-grass. Occasional food not recorded. 
November. Customary food. —Grain, seeds of plants. Occasional food. 
—Newly-sown seeds of wheat; small caterpillars. 
December. Customary food. —Grain, principally from stacks. Occa¬ 
sional food. —Seeds, maize, sprouting beans. 
Food of Young Sparrows to the time of leaving the Nest. 
May. Customary food. —Grains of last year’s corn; small beetles; 
caterpillars. Occasional food. —Buds; red spider ; hair-worms ; small flies. 
June. Customary food. —Caterpillars of various kinds, up to three- 
quarters of an inch in length ; young wheat. Occasional food. —Beetles, 
large brown Cabbage Moth, wireworm. 
July. Customary food. —Caterpillars; beetles; soft milky grains of 
wheat and barley. Occasional food. —Bluebottle-flies. 
August. Customary food. —Caterpillars ; beetles ; young corn. Occa¬ 
sional food. —Small chrysalids. 
To the above records Mr. Gurney added the following summary ;— 
“ It may be said that about 75 per cent, of an adult Sparrow’s food during its 
life is corn of some kind. The remaining 25 per cent, may be roughly divided as 
followsSeeds of weeds, 10 per. cent.; green peas, 4 per. cent.; beetles, 3 per 
cent.; caterpillars, 2 per cent.; insects which fly, 1 per cent.; other things, 5 per 
cent. In young Sparrows not more than 40 per cent, is corn; while about 40 per 
