6 
bird-stuffers’ shops are filled with Owls sent in for preservation,, 
and at a low computation not less than 700 are killed annually in 
England for this purpose alone, besides immense numbers which, 
are merely left to rot. It is presumably too much to expect that 
our overburdened Government will ever undertake such investi¬ 
gations as those which have been so successfully conducted by the 
IT.S. Department of Agriculture. But where individual enterprise 
has cleared the way, it is reasonable to hope that the Wild Birds’ 
Protection Act may be regarded as something more than a dead 
letter by the men who ought to be foremost in upholding it. 
In Germany of late years the most important work has been 
done by Dr. Altum andE. von Homeyer on the Woodpeckers, # and 
by the former on the Crows and Buzzardsf; Prof. G. Rorig on 
the Crow and Rook (1898-99); and Eckstein on the Kingfisher,. 
Woodpeckers, Cuckoo, Buzzard ,X etc. Some of this work is too 
important to be passed over, especially as most of the birds in 
question are common to both our own country and. Germany. 
For example, Rorig between November 13th, 1896, and November,. 
12th, 1899, analysed the contents of 3,259 stomachs of the Carrion 
and Hooded Crows, both of which birds have a bad name for 
poaching. The total contents of these stomachs weighed 29,676*2: 
gram. 
Small stones ... 18*5. 
Vegetable matter ... 57'6 (about 30 % corn). 
Animal matter ... 239 (5*8 % mice, 8*3 % insects, and 5 % flesh). 
In 44 cases traces of eggs were found; remains of hares- 
occurred in 26 stomachs and partridges in 4. A similar analysis 
of the contents of the stomachs of 1,523 Rooks gave the following. 
results (weight of contents of stomachs 12,706*0 grains):—- 
0 / 
/o 
Small stones ... ... 27‘6. 
Vegetable matter ... 46'9 (about 22 % corn). 
Animal matter ... ... 25*5 (IT % mice, 22 % insects). 
The large proportion of insect food consumed at once challenges 
attention, and careful analysis shows that injurious species pre¬ 
ponderated in the proportion of about 5 to 1. Eggs were found in 
nine cases. It will be seen that although the Rook is by no means- 
a blameless character, there is a good deal to be said in his favour, 
and in all probability the many complaints that have been made of 
# Altum, “ Unsere Spechte u. ihre forstliclie Bedeutung.” See, however, 
NaumanB, “ Naturgesch. d. Vogel Mittel-Europa’s,” IV., p. 257 (1901);. 
v. Homeyer, “Die Spechte u. ihr Werth in forstlicher Beziehung.” 
t “ Jour, fur Ornith.” (1889), p. 160. 
t “ Aus dem "VValde ” (1900), and “ Journ. fur Ornith.” (1887). 
