143 
1921.] Economic Status of the Kingfisher. 
the larvae of various insects have been observed in the bird^s 
beak when alighting before entering the nest. Fish are 
sometimes held crosswise, in which case the bird jerks them 
upwards catching them head downwards. In other cases 
they are held lengthwise, either by the head or the tail, and 
swallowed, this action being accompanied by a throw-back of 
the head. 
When newly hatched the young are fed by the parents, 
but after a time they frequently do no more than deposit 
the food about half-way along the passage. In some cases 
it is allowed to remain there and become trampled down 
into the putrid mass of material which has accumulated 
there. 
4. Depredations. —The opinion is frequently expressed 
that the Kingfisher destroys large numbers of young trout, 
and such an opinion seldom loses anything in its repetition, 
so that among a certain class of people this bird has come 
to be regarded as an enemy and injurious to all fishing 
preserves and hatcheries. 
As is frequently the case where the food of a bird is con¬ 
cerned, careful observation and investigation do not bear 
out or even lend any support to the views just mentioned. 
Indeed, one can scarcely imagine any other factor that 
would remove so many enemies of fish ova and fry with so 
little injury. 
Unfortunately, once a bird is given a bad name, it is 
difficult to clear its character, and writers who should know 
better persist in repeating the inaccurate stories as to the 
number of fish destroyed, etc. The ultimate result of all 
this condemnation is that in many parts of the country the 
Kingfisher is shot down mercilessly, and is slowly but surely 
becoming rarer, much to the detriment of all trout streams. 
IV. Examination of Old Nests and Pellets. 
1 . Nest Contents .—A 11 examination of one hundred and 
twenty nest-contents shows them to consist entirely of 
animal remains, of which fish constitutes 59*5 per cent., 
