SURVEY BULLETIN No. 84
FRUIT INDUSTRY
PARS Lr.
= By kB. L. BRAD.
- Assistant, Biological ‘Survey
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2) AAXGHINGTON: ©
GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE
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Historic, archived document
Do not assume content reflects current
scientific knowledge, policies, or practices.
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Bull 34, Biological Survey, U. S. Dept. of Agriculture.
AHnen & Co Baltimere_
CALIFORNIA QUAIL
Issued August 8, 1910.
US Or PAN iENt Or AGRICUL Uline
BIOLOGICAL SURVEY—BULLETIN No. 34
C. HART MERRIAM, Chief
BIRDS OF CALIFORNIA
IN RELATION TO THE
FRUIT INDUSTRY
EAVES 1 ied
By F. E. L. BEAL
Assistant, Biological Survey
WASHINGTON
GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE
1910
LETTER OF TRANSMITTAL.
U. 5. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE,
BIOLOGICAL SURVEY,
Washington, D. C., February 25, 1910.
Sir: [ have the honor to transmit herewith for publication. as
Bulletin No. 34 of the Biological Survey, Part II of the Birds of Cali-
fornia in Relation to the Fruit Industry, by Prof. F. E. L. Beal.
This, the final part of the report, treats of some of the most important
California birds from the standpoint of the orchardist and the farmer.
Careful study of the food habits of birds that frequent orchards and
their vicinity shows that most of the species are beneficial, and that
without their aid the difficulty and expense of raising fruit would be
enormously increased; still a few species under certain circumstances
are harmful and need to be held in check.
Respectfully, —
C. Hart MERRIAM,
Chief, Biological Survey.
Hon. JAMEs WILSON,
Secretary of Agriculture.
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USE RCAELO ANS:
Page.
Poate le California quail. 2. Boas ee se eee eee Frontispiece.
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Veo Bullock oriole: 2/2 3i as ae eR ce ee ee 68
Nil= Green-backed coldfinchs.< s.22. 5 ee noes See Se ee 74
6
BIRDS OF CALIFORNIA IN RELATION TO THE FRUIT
INDUSTRY—PART II.
INTRODUCTION.
The first part of the report on Birds of California in Relation to the
Fruit Industry was published in 1907. In addition to the linnet or
house finch, which has attracted wide attention and is the subject of
much complaint, 37 other species were discussed. In the present
and concluding part, the food habits of 32 additional species are
treated. Among them are some of the most important birds of the
State, regarded from the standpoint of the farmer and fruit grower.
The aim has been to collect all data possible on the food of the sev-
eral species, to consider the facts impartially, and to render a just
verdict as to the birds’ economic relations.
All the birds whose food habits are discussed have direct relations
with husbandry. It is true that many of them have not been charged
with the destruction or injury of fruit or any other farm products.
Almost all, however, destroy great numbers of harmful insects or
devour seeds of noxious weeds; hence they are important econom-
ically.
A large part of the present report consists of statements concerning
the food actually found in the stomachs of the birds. . In this connec-
tion it should be borne in mind that by far the greater number of stom-
achs used in this investigation were collected in the more thickly set-
tled and highly cultivated parts of the State, so that they probably
contain a larger proportion of the products of husbandry than would
a series of stomachs taken at random from all parts of the range of
each species. It goes without saying that fruit and grain can be
eaten only by such birds as have access to those products, while birds
living in uncultivated places must subsist upon the fruits of nature.
Some California birds show a marked preference for oats, but in
this State the presence of oats in a bird’s stomach does not necessarily
indicate that cultivated oats have been eaten, for wild oats cover
hundreds of thousands of acres, and in the cultivated areas grow
almost everywhere, affording a supply of food for many birds.
Besides wild oats, the crop of volunteer oats that succeeds the cul-
tivated crop is abundant and is to be found wherever this grain is
{f
8 BIRDS OF CALIFORNIA AFFECTING FRUIT INDUSTRY.
grown. In fact, in California the eating of oats can not as a rule be
counted against a bird. }
In no State in the Union is an accurate knowledge of the relations
of birds to agriculture more important than in California. Climate
and soil combine to make California an important grain and fruit pro-
ducing State. The acreage already devoted to agriculture is large and
is likely to increase for decades to come, as population increases and
as new cultural methods are developed and irrigation is extended.
Insects that now attract little attention are likely to increase and ~
become serious pests. Certain birds formerly accustomed to a diet
consisting partly of wild fruits, the supply of which is limited and
likely to become smaller, will probably invade orchards and injure
cultivated fruit. Hence it is worth while for the farmer and orchard-
ist to learn as much as possible of the food of the birds that harbor
near his premises, that he may know how much good each species
does and how much harm, and so be enabled to strike a fair balance.
Some birds, like the swallows, swifts, wrens, and chickadees, are
so strictly insectivorous that they are exceedingly beneficial. All
they require at the hands of man in return for their services is pro-
tection. Others at some time of the year injure crops, though the
damage by many is exceedingly small. Be the loss what it may,
however, if a given species by its insectivorous habits prevents much
ereater destruction than it inflicts, the farmer should be willing to
bear the loss for the sake of the greater gain.
Few birds are always and everywhere so seriously destructive that
their extermination can be urged on sound economic principles.
Only four of the species common in California can be regarded as of
doubtful utility: These are the linnet, California jay, Steller jay, and
redbreasted sapsucker. When the known methods of protecting
fruit have been exhausted, or can not be employed profitably, then
a reasonable reduction of the numbers of the offending birds is per-
missible. But the more the food habits of birds are studied the
more evident is the fact that with a normal distribution of species
and a fair supply of natural food, the damage to agricultural products
by birds is small compared with the benefit.
A reasonable way of viewing the relation of birds to the farmer is
to consider birds as servants, employed to destroy weeds and insects.
In return for this service they should be protected, and such as need
it should receive a fair equivalent in the shape of fruit and small
grain. Nothing can be more certain than that, except in a few cases,
any farmer Who is willing to pay the toll collected by birds for actual
services rendered will be vastly benefited. In the long run, no part
of the capital invested in farm or orchard js more certain to pay big
interest than the small sum required for the care and protection of
birds.
CALIFORNIA QUAIL. 9
CALIFORNIA QUAIL.
(Lophortyz californicus and vallicola.)
The California quail (see frontispiece) is common and generally
distributed over the State west of the Sierra, except at the higher
altitudes, and is especially abundant in the fruit-raising sections.
Like the bobwhite of the East, this quail never goes far from cover,
and it delights to dwell on unimproved land where trees and chap-
arral alternate with small areas of open ground. In settled regions
it is somewhat domestic in habits and soon becomes accustomed to
living in orchards, gardens, and cultivated grounds. The writer has
seen a female sitting upon her eggs in a garden within 30 feet of a
house, between which and the nest carriages and foot passengers
passed many times each day. In winter a covey frequently feeds
with the farmer’s chickens, and if not disturbed will continue to do
so until pairing time.
The natural food of the quail consists of the seeds of that vast
eroup of plants known as weeds, with a little foliage of the same,
especially in winter, when the leaves are young and tender. Con-
sidering how small is the amount of fruit usually found in the stomach
of this bird, it is a surprise to learn that it sometimes does serious
damage to vineyards. Investigation, however, shows that, as in
most other similar cases, the injury results only when too many
birds gather in a limited area. Nearly all the complaints against
the quail for eating fruit are that it visits vineyards in immense
numbers and eats grapes. When thousands visit a vineyard, even if
only occasionally, and each bird eats or spoils at least one grape, the
result is disastrous.
Mrs. Florence Merriam Bailey, writing of the foothills of San Diego
County, says:
In 1889 quail were so numerous that the dust of the roads was printed with their
tracks, and it was an everyday matter to have them start out of the brush and run
ahead of the horses quite unconcernedly, pattering along in their stiff, prim way,
with their topknots thrown forward over their beaks. In fact, the quail were so
abundant as to be a pest. For several years great flocks of them came down the
canyons to Major Merriam’s vineyard, where they destroyed annually from 20 to 30
tons of fruit. In one season, July to October, 1891, 130 dozen were trapped on his
ranch. The result of this wholesale destruction was manifest when I returned to
the valley in 1894. The birds were then rarely seen on the roads and seldom
flushed in riding about the valley.
Another observer states that he once saw a flock of about a thou-
sand quail eating Zinfandel grapes in a vineyard in the central part
of the State, and another says that in southern California he has
seen as many as 5,000 feeding upon Muscat grapes. In the writer’s
interviews with California fruit growers, only one mentioned the quail
aAuk, XIII, p. 116, 1896.
10 BIRDS OF CALIFORNIA AFFECTING FRUIT INDUSTRY.
as harmful. His ranch was situated along the hills on the side of a
narrow valley, adjacent to wild grazing land with much chaparral
and forest, among which the quail lived. In this case the annual
loss was estimated at 2 or 3 tons of grapes.
In the laboratory investigation of the food of the California quail
619 stomachs were examined. They were collected in every month
except May, but only one was obtained in March. The other months
are well represented. Animal food, principally insects, amounts to
but 3 percent, and most of this was found in the stomachs of young
birds, mere broodlings. Vegetable food amounts to 97 percent and
consists mainly of seeds of plants most of which are of noxious or
troublesome species.
Animal food.—Ants appear to be a favorite food. They were found
in 82 stomachs, and were eaten by adults as well as by young. They
amount, however, to less than 1 percent of the whole diet. The rest
of the animal food aggregates a little more than 2 percent and is
distributed as follows: Beetles in 30 stomachs, bugs (Hemiptera) in
38, caterpillars in 11, grasshoppers in 7, flies in 2, spiders in 6, mille-
peds in 1, and snails in 2. The most interesting point in this con-
nection was the stomach of a broodling only 3 or 4 days old. Besides
several adult Hemiptera, some ants, caterpillars, and spiders, and a
few seeds, it contained 280 minute insects, which constituted 76
percent of the stomach’s contents, and were identified as an imma-
ture form of a species of scale, Phenacoccus helianthi.
In this connection the following extract from a letter dated at Los
Angeles, Calif., October 28, 1908, by Dr. W. G. Chambers, to the
Secretary of Agriculture is interesting:
Last May during the hatching season one of my female quail died a week prior to
completing the hatch. An incandescent light of 8 candlepower was substituted, the
result being 15 baby quail, very wild at first, not understanding human sounds
or language, but finally becoming as dociie as pet chickens. They were raised in
my back yard, running at large after the first week.
A number of Marguerite bushes which grow in profusion in the yard were so infested
with black scale that I had decided to uproot them and had postponed doing so, as
the little quail worked so persistently among the branches; upon investigation I
discovered them eating the scale and twittering happily; they would swallow the
fully developed scale and thoroughly clean the branches of all those undeveloped.
The young in the first week of life eat animal matter to the extent
of from 50 to 75 percent of the food, but by the time they are 4
weeks old they take little if any more animal food than the adults.
Vegetable food.—The vegetable part of the quail’s food may be
divided into fruit, grain, seeds, and forage. Fruit appeared in 106
stomachs, and aggregates 2.3 percent of the yearly diet. It was dis-
tributed as follows: Grapes in 7 stomachs, prunes in 9, apple in 3,
Rubus (blackberry or raspberry) in 4, olive in 1, elderberry in 21,
snowberry in 8, manzanita in 2, huckleberry in 11, and rose-haws in 3.
CALIFORNIA QUAIL. et
Pulp and skins, identified as fruit only, were found in 27 stomachs,
and unknown seeds, probably those of some small fruit or berry,
occurred in 10 stomachs. It is evident that the percentage of any
one of the above is insignificant. Stomach examination throws no
new light upon the quail’s grape-eating habits, except to show that
the ravages complained of are exceptional. That fruit does not con-
stitute any important part of the bird’s annual food is clearly proved.
Grain was found in 133 stomachs, and constitutes 6.4 percent of
the food. It was distributed as follows: Corn in 14 stomachs, wheat
in 15, oats in 13, barley in 89, and ryein2. The principal complaints
against the quail on the score of grain eating are that flocks sometimes
visit newly sown fields, and eat large quantities of the seed. Walter
EK. Bryant says on this point: 7
Two males which I shot one evening, as they were going to roost for the night, after
having been feeding on a newly sown field, contained the following, mainly in the
crop: (a) Two hundred and ten whole grains of barley, 6 pieces of broken barley,
3 grains of ‘cheat,’ and 1 of wheat, besides a few barley hulls, some clover leaves, and
alfilaria; (b) one hundred and eighty-five whole grains of barley, 5 broken pieces,
4 orains of ‘cheat,’ and 2 of wheat; also barley hulls, clover, and alfilaria. The flock
numbered nearly or quite 20 birds.4
Only one report accuses the bird of eating grain from the harvest
field. Mr. W. T. Craig, of San Francisco, writing to the United
States Department of Agriculture, says:
I have observed the quail enter a field of wheat to the number of thousands, and had
they not been driven away they would have destroyed the whole crop.
Stomach examination does not indicate any month in which grain
_is eaten in excess of other food. January shows the highest per-
centage, 12.4, but November is nearly as high, while December,
although between the two, shows less than 3 percent. A little more
than 3 percent was eaten in February, and none at all in March and
April, though the newly sown grain would be accessible in one at
least of these months. June and July, the harvest months, show
respectively 4.1 percent and 10.7 percent. In fact the stomach record
plainly indicates that the quail does not make special search for grain,
but being naturally a seed eater takes grain when it comes in the way.
The seeds of a multitude of plants which have no apparent useful
function except to increase by their decay the deposit of humus in the
soil constitute the staff of life of the quail. In this particular inves-
tigation they aggregate 62.5 percent of the food of the year. They
appear in stomachs taken in every month and reach a good per-
centage in each, the only months that show much diminution in
quantity being January, February, March, and April, when new
forage partly replaces seeds. The percentage is highest in June, 85.9,
but shows no great falling off from July to December inclusive.
a Zoe, IV, pp. 55-56, 1893-94.
1 BIRDS OF CALIFORNIA AFFECTING FRUIT INDUSTRY.
Seventy-three kinds of seeds were identified, at least generically, and
more than half of them were determined specifically. Many more
were ground up so as to be unrecognizable. The following is a list of
the seeds with the number of stomachs in which each kind occurred:
Poverty weed: (va axillams) jes nee tet 2 ae en ee 3
Gum weed (Grindelia squUarnOs@) 2 es ee ee 2
Buranarigold-(Brudens Sp:) cee eee See oe ci ee WH
Suntlower Ci clianthus spt )eseas sseces = eee ee eee a ar eee eae mere eerie eee 1
Tanweed.(Madia'satwa) ns: 20s tere Soe cee ae eee ge ee weed ea eee 67
Mayweed’(Anthemis cotula) 2282, Searan se te ee, ee ee 2h
MalkcthistlenGS cle berm tances i) eo ee rae eect reser ge ee ne 14
histlesCCwstiit eps) 2.2 Sac eee Sete are ee ts aN AC eo ee eee eee 5
Blessed: thistle ((Cnicusbenedicis\s eee yas ee ee ee 1
Burthistle (Centaurea. meletensis meas ee ae ey ee a ee eee 201
Sow thistles(Sonchustaspen)e-.2 2 ere Ne ne tes ee ee ie eee ee 2
Sow. thistle (Sonchis oleraccws) 2. 8a aay ages eye eee eg a eee ere 1
Pricklylettuce (Lactuca scariola)ev ae ae Ser ie es ne pe ee 4
Calitormia; dandelion (-Agoserisis ps) sara aia yeep ee eee i 2
Blue vervain: (Verbenaihastata) £27 8 seo Ses See ee ee oe ee ee,
Srickseed (chinospermiumisp.) a. © = act te ee eee 16
Burweed. (Amsinckiatesselata) acs.) ee ee 1)
RibwortiCPlantago lanceolata) a. == aes: rae ee acer ee 2
Purshiribwort (Plantago pursht)< —o. eee oe ae ee ee il
Common: plantain CPlantagomajor): 2. te a0 ap ee eee ee ee ee 2
Paintedieup CCastillerd. sp.) ache ASE Se Oe a eee eee 1
iBlackimichtshade-GSolanwm. a1gTum) mie Sn ee see see ee ee 10
Dodden(Cuscwta spac as cra be ois soe soe Rie Se ee oe ees ee ee 3
Morpingelory (Convolvulus space sete sae eee ee ote ce ee eee 2
‘Pimpemel:Anagallis sp.) noes eae Soe Se Se ee ees eee 2
Carrot) OUcuUsyCGr Old) = = 2 Soe te Sa eo Bie NE ela Ens eile ete eye et gra Cae ea 5
1 B04 bac @ EAH ayy COE] 0) NAPE) ae oe ee A IE A Metta eRe mena OL Delay aie Aes 2 150
Bur cloveri(@ucdicago denticulata) is. 220) 5 ote ee Cee ee ere eee 156
Sweet clover:( Melvlotusialba)!.. .- 2- "se. 2 a ad eae eee 6
Clover: (2iajolvuimiisp) oe at ye SB 2 aio: se meee CRs eee oe el re ae ae Se eee 75
Deer weed (otis; glaber)\s yeaa peer aa se ee a ee eee 50
Vetch: (Vicia: spiye esc oo. a sce Aieie ee area oe tan te cage as 32
Bive-finger CRotentilia ssp2):ces 2 sir ee ee oe eae ss See ee 1
(urkey mullem:(/remocar pus scwgerus)\ec-e = ten ee eee ee ees 168
Sumac (Rhus lawring). i208 oe aes ee See ig is cle We sd pet Soe gee 69
‘Poison ‘oak (Rhus diverstloba) = i hese eee 2 eee eet ee ere ee ee ee 52>
Alfilaria (Hrodvum eee ne) ane Oe MEM Or eater eel, 30
Alfilaria (Erodium moschatum)
Carolina geranium (Geranium caro ae UN cieccoiedutlis teat nee aaa 47
Common geranium (Geranium dissectum) - -
Wood sorrel(Ozales corniculata)n.2. 22 eee ee Rea ee ee eee eee 1
Mallow (Malva rotundifolia) <2), ea. oa ees ee ee eee ee il]
Shepherd's purse (Capsellaibursapastoris) a2 aaa nee ee eee 1
Peppererass,( Lepidiune Sp 2)i. te sos ofertas octane eee ee eg eee nee eee ee 5
Wald radish’ GRaphanus satvvus) sje ae ee pe eee 2 5
Black mustard. (Brassica:nvgra) =o. 2 Ae. sees ee er ee ee 32
Wild turnip (Bbrassica’campestris) 2: == ce eins ees ore te tne Se 3
California poppy .((Eischscholizia calsfornaca)o >= oa. 8 eee ee ee ee eee 1
Buttercup (Ranunculusisp.) io... Ae ie Bee ee ee eee i4
CALIFORNIA QUAIL. 13
WiEler: CLOWlOObGRGILUNCULUSTAQIEGLULIS yaar S2c0 Se Yasin 2 2-2 se |S ee 3
Mimensvlettucer@Monitva: penjolatm) mn x8: hres s 8 fois cc oi 22 hese canoe <2 = os oe 26
eddemaids: (CQlImarinta Menziest ies atte ose 2 2a cil tan ee he tw ss Ss Sete 58
ieee (CO NENOPOdlum ALOU) Na wee act c eee ao Nos. a ea cee he 1A
VOUeh PIO Weed CANN anaes NCLOLELUS) tas w= le hes main ln es whe ioe ie Cl
COrMES PUTT VAS PCNGUULG AnVCTiStS) mmete nee ata) Seniesa eee sce oii ole 1
Common chickweed (Stellamamedia)e sas 1225, 55- 5-3-2522 he Se: 62
inne dechickeweeds(Cenasivuny Grvense) as o 252 226 2s fs 2 2c See a eh ee ie 2
Sleepyneatenthya (Silene aILinnind) elem an tere ror, Be Seyticl- abe el 58
Black bindweed (PRoltjgonwm convolvulus\i. 2: 22.2... 52282 teas 2 eet 1
Dotted smartweed: CPolygonum. punciatum) ... >=. -22 22242 22S. 2 at Ss ese 2
Common knotweed (Polygonum lapathifolium)...............5.--------2---- 2
WIRE SO EASSH C/ZOLUGOMUMACUICILLGTC rata ke arne aacine mea hae sees eae oR ee ciwelag = 55
Candy 0 fle (OOo GASTON) es ee Es ie ae en hen eee 9
Soto 1 CLUINUCL ICCLOSCLLO) rete erste fle fencer eles ann ote Morse ea bas Sale 59
SedienCaner ep) eis tee ae te Soe ie San Roads we See stin Uehara ist eoerd a 26
Gea lningllen QC On Meniae Spaces te cera ic te eke cian Sa ears Ss hate, Sa Be ada tald a
Ra eesOASSA( PLONE DENCRILE cay as tenn c= Epa ieia aioe of Scote, ds ays Shin wa intdaie awe ees 56
SOMME OMIG: CTONIUSHIONOCOCCUS |r wat a act Meo ns Bag cee ne Se he eee 3
Cheat wonGhessi( as TOMus-SCCOULNUS) Ho s-2 eo et i ae eee 2 kth STs one 18
Na konacs* COGLAILNUG ese e cccttt 2 is in A hain ates be a ww chaise oa! Ay Sc ee aie 3 Sas 29
[rhneveslat ie (GEL MY GV AOA OY 0 CASTS) cesta et Re eI ae ld Pe me 1
Hy Sci Odean OSILU DO SELIGENG er coterie, tk ee ese ERMC Serre Si NMA WS ee he Sa ae ee 5
@ananyeonaces CaiC LMS CAROLINA) = }p)
thrushes, orioles, grosbeaks, cedar birds, and linnets, as well as jays,
56 BIRDS OF CALIFORNIA AFFECTING FRUIT INDUSTRY.
were present in numbers, but two weeks later, when the earlier
varieties were gone and the later ones were ripe, hardly any smaller
birds were present, while the jays were as busy as ever; and still
later, at the end of the season, when the prune crop came on, jays
were still taking a heavy toll.
It will thus be seen that the jay has many more bad qualities
than good. In fact, from the economic point of view he has few
redeeming virtues. Something may be said in his favor from the
esthetic side, as he is a handsome bird, and people interested in
country life would no doubt miss his familiar presence. But as the
case stands there are far too many California jays. If they could
be reduced to a fourth or a half of their present numbers, the remain-
der would probably do no serious harm. This is exactly what is
likely to take place gradually as the State becomes more thickly
settled and forest and chaparral lands decrease.
BLACKBIRD, ORIOLE, AND MEADOWLARK FAMILY.
(Icteride.)
The family which includes the orioles, blackbirds, and meadow-
larks embraces species widely different in form, plumage, nesting
habits, and food. The orioles nest in trees and obtain the greater
part of their food thereon. The blackbirds nest upon low trees,
bushes, or reeds, and take their food from trees to some extent, but
mostly from the ground. The meadowlarks, the most terrestrial
of all, nest upon the ground and obtain nearly all of their food there.
Orioles eat the greatest percentage of insects, the meadowlarks eat
a little less, while the blackbirds eat the least. Blackbirds rank
next to sparrows as eaters of weed seeds, especially in winter.
Besides the Brewer blackbird there are in California 5 species
and subspecies of redwinged blackbirds, which are so much alike
that most of them can be distinguished only by ornithologists.
All have practically the same nesting habits, and their food is not
essentially different.
BICOLORED REDWING.
(Agelaius gubernator californicus.)
The bicolored redwing is distributed locally over a large part of
California, but owing to its peculiar habit of building its nest
directly over water, the areas it occupies are restricted. Flooded
marshes and ponds overgrown with bulrushes or tules are much
to its taste, affording abundant nesting sites. Such places are
common in California and many are of large extent—as those on
Suisun Bay and in the Sacramento and San Joaquin valleys. Among
BLACKBIRD, ORIOLE, AND MEADOWLARK FAMILY. Dit
these the bicolored redwing and his redwinged relatives find con-
genial quarters. :
For the laboratory investigation of the food of this species, 198
stomachs were available. They were collected in every month
of the year, and probably give a fair idea of the bird’s food. It
was found to consist of 14 percent of animal matter to 86 of vege-
table. The animal food is practically all msects, and the vegetable
either grain or weed seed.
Animal food.—Most of the animal food was taken in May, June,
and July. May stomachs showed the maximum of nearly 91 per-
cent. There is a sudden rise in the amount from April to May and
a sudden fall from July to August. The insects composing this
part of the food were distributed among several of the most com-
mon orders, but none of them appear to be specially sought after.
Beetles aggregate about 5 percent. A few were predaceous ground
beetles, but the most were either leaf beetles (Chrysomelidce) or
weevils. Hymenoptera, in the shape of wasps and ants, were taken
very sparingly in the four months from May to August inclusive, and
amount to about one-fourth of 1 percent for the year. Bugs were
eaten during the six warmer months, and for the year aggregate
just 1 percent. Grasshoppers constitute over 15 percent of the
food in July. They are a fraction of 1 percent for the other months
and average 1.5 percent for the year.
Caterpillars aggregate 5.5 percent, the highest of any item of
animal food. In May they amount to over 45 percent of the food
of that month, which is more than for all the other months together.
Probably they are fed largely to the nestlings, as a few taken in
May had eaten a large percentage of these insects. It is worthy of
special notice that the caterpillar known in the cotton-raising States
as the cotton bollworm, and elsewhere as the corn-ear worm, Heliothis
obsoleta, was found in 7 stomachs. This is certainly to the credit of
the bird, and it may be that its visits to cornfields are for this insect
primarily, and that corn is taken only incidentally. A few miscel-
laneous insects amount to less than 1 percent and complete the
animal portion of the diet.
The following are the insects identified in stomachs of the bicolored
redwing:
COLEOPTERA.
Elaphrus ruscarius. Systena ochracea.
Gastroidea cyanea cxsia, Notoxus alamede.
Chetocnema minuta. Apocrypha dyschirioides.
LEPIDOPTERA.
Heliothis obsoleta.
58 BIRDS OF CALIFORNIA AFFECTING FRUIT INDUSTRY.
Vegetable food—Two prominent constituents make up the vege-
table food of the redwing—grain and weed seed. Grain amounts
to 70 and weed seed to 15 percent. The grain consists of corn,
wheat, oats, and barley. Oats are the favorite. They amount-to
over 47 percent of the yearly food, and were eaten in every month
except February, when they were replaced by barley. The month
of maximum consumption was December, when nearly 72 percent
was eaten, but several other months were nearly as high. Wheat
stands next to oats in the quantity eaten, nearly 13 percent. It is
taken quite regularly in every month except March and May. Bar-
ley was found only in stomachs taken in February, October, and
November, and nearly all of it was taken in February. The aver-
age for the year is 5.5 percent. Corn is eaten still less than barley,
and nearly all was consumed in September, when it reached nearly
46 percent of the month’s food. A little was eaten in May, August,
and October, but the aggregate for the year is only slightly more than
4 percent.
Weed seed amounts to 15 percent of the food of the bicolored red-
wing. It is eaten in every month except May, when it gives way
to animal food. The following species were identified:
Sunflower (Helianthus sp.). Chickweed (Stellaria media).
Tarweed ( Madia sativa). Catchfly (Silene sp.).
Bur clover (Medicago denticulatum). Smartweed (Polygonum).
Alfilaria (Erodium cicutarium). Sorrel (Rwmex sp.).
Red maids (Calandrinia menzies?). Canary seed (Phalaris caroliniana).
Pigweed (Amaranthus retroflexus). Sedge (Carex sp.).
These seeds were eaten very regularly throughout the year. The
greatest consumption is in March, 35 percent, but as the record for
several other months does not fall much below, probably this has
no special significance. All of the above weeds are more or less of a
nuisance, though at times some of them may be used as forage plants.
Fruit is not eaten by the bicolored redwing.
Food of young—Among the stomachs of the bicolored redwing
were 11 of nestlings varying in age from 4 days to 2 weeks.
The food was made up of 99 percent of animal matter and 1 percent
of vegetable, though most of the latter was mere rubbish, no doubt
accidental. Caterpillars were the largest item, and amounted to an
average of 45 percent. Beetles, many of them in the larval state,
stood next, with 32 percent. Hemiptera, especially stinkbugs and
leafhoppers, amounted to 19 percent. A few miscellaneous insects and
spiders made up the other 3 percent. It will be noted that the food
of the young is practically all animal and that a preponderance of
caterpillars and beetle larvee makes it softer than that of the adults.
BLACKBIRD, ORIOLE, AND MEADOWLARK FAMILY. 59
SUMMARY.
In summing up the facts relating to the food of the bicolored
redwing, the most prominent point is the great percentage of grain.
Evidently if this bird were abundant in a grain-raising country it
would be a menace to the crop. But no complaints of the bird’s
depredations on grain have been made, and it is significant that the
erain consumed is not taken at or just before the harvest, but is a
constant element of every month’s food. As the favorite grain is
oats, which grows wild in great abundance, it must be admitted
that, with all its possibilities for mischief, the bird at present is
doing very little damage. So far as its insect food goes, it does
no appreciable harm and much good. Its consumption of weed seed
is a positive benefit. Like the other redwings, it has interesting
habits and a pleasant song, and for the present, at least, should be
protected.
OTHER REDWINGS.
In addition to the stomachs of the bicolored redwing, a few of
2 other species of redwings have been examined. They comprise
16 stomachs of the tricolored redwing (Agelaius tricolor), and 12 of
the western redwing (some form of A. pheniceus). From the exami-
nation of sosmall a number, final data on the food can not be obtained,
but so far as the testimony goes, it indicates that both species consume
more insects and less grain than the bicolored. The stomachs of
the tricolored contain 79 percent of animal matter to 21 of vegetable.
The animal matter consists mostly of beetles and caterpillars, with
a decided preponderance of caterpillars. The vegetable food is
nearly all weed seed. One stomach alone contained barley.
In the case of the western redwings, the animal food amounted
to 63 percent to 87 of vegetable. The former was pretty evenly
distributed among beetles, grasshoppers, and Lepidoptera (moths and
_ caterpillars), and contained in addition a few aquatic insects. The
vegetable food was largely weed seed. A little barley was foundin
one stomach, and one was filled with oats.
It is evident from the foregoing that the beneficial greatly out-
weigh the injurious elements in the food of these redwings.
BREWER BLACKBIRD.
(Euphagus cyanocephalus. )
The Brewer blackbird (Pl. IV) occurs over most of the cultivated
districts of California. By choice it is a resident of fields, meadows,
orchards, and about ranch buildings and cultivated lands generally.
It takes the place on the Pacific coast occupied by the crow blackbird
(Quiscalus quiscula and xneus) in the Mississippi Valley and farther
60 BIRDS OF CALIFORNIA AFFECTING FRUIT INDUSTRY.
east, and is so similar in appearance and habits that the eastern
observer in California forgets that it is not the same species. It
nests in bushes, weeds, and sometimes in trees, and is so gregarious
that several nests are often built in the same vicinity. Large colonies
frequently establish themselves near farm buildings, and feed freely
in the stock yards and cultivated fields. When fruit is ripe these
blackbirds do not hesitate to take a share, and they visit the orchard
daily for the early cherries.
They claim a share of grain also, but do not appear to eat it at
harvest time so much as afterwards. Mr. Walter K. Fisher, writing
from Stockton, Calif., on November 12,1897, reports them as feeding
on newly sown wheat that had not been harrowed in, eating nearly
all thus left exposed. He describes the birds as in such immense
flocks in the grain fields that at a distance they looked like smoke
rising from the ground, and says that stomachs of birds taken were
full of wheat. On the other hand, Prof. A. J. Cook, of Claremont,
Calif., says that he considered it one of the most valuable species
in the State; and Mr. J. F. [lingsworth, of Ontario, Calif., in a paper
read before the Pomona Farmers’ Club,% speaks of it as a beneficial
bird, which should be protected. Mr. O. E. Bremner, State horti-
cultural inspector, in a letter to the Biological Survey, says:
The cankerworm episode is quite a common one with us here. In one district,
Dry Creek Valley, Sonoma County, there has been a threatened invasion of the
prune trees by spring cankerworms several times, but each time the blackbirds came
to the rescue and completely cleaned them out. I have often seen bands of black-
birds working in an infested orchard. They work from tree to tree, clearing them
out as they go. Ifa worm tries to escape by webbing down, they will dive down and
catch him in mid-air.
During the cherry season the writer observed these birds in the
orchards, and collected a number of them. They were seen to eat
freely of cherries, and the stomachs of those taken showed that a
goodly proportion of the food consisted of cherry pulp. While these
observations were being made, a neighboring fruit raiser began to
plow his orchard. Almost immediately every blackbird in the vicin-
ity was upon the newly opened ground, and many followed within
a few feet of the plowman’s heels in their eagerness to get every
erub or other insect turned out by the plow. On another occasion
an orchard was being watched while the far side was being plowed.
A continual flight of blackbirds was passing in both directions over
the observer’s head, and practically all of them alighted on the newly
plowed ground, fed there for a while, and then returned, probably
to their nests. When plowing was finished and harrowing began,
the blackbirds immediately changed their foraging ground, and fol-
lowed the harrow as closely as they had accompanied the plow.
a Ontario Observer, June 3, 1899.
PLATE |V
Bull. 34, Biological Survey, U. S. Dept. of Agriculture.
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QuldWovidg Y¥aMayg
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Ws
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-s
ae
BLACKBIRD, ORIOLE, AND MEADOWLARK FAMILY. 61
In the laboratory investigation of this bird’s food 312 stomachs
were available. They were collected in every month in the year,
and represent fairly the fruit and grain growing sections of the State
from Santa Rosa southward. Many were taken in orchards and
gardens when in the act of pilfering fruit or other products of hus-
bandry. Besides adults, 29 nestlings of various ages are represented.
The first analysis of the stomach contents gives 32 percent of animal
matter to 68 of vegetable. The animal food consists of insects, spi-
ders, sow bugs, snails, and eggshells.
Animal food.—The animal food attains its maximum in April,
when it reaches 82 percent. From that time it slowly decreases
until December, when it is only 5 percent, and then rises toward its
maximum. The increase is very sudden from March to April. Bee-
tles constitute over 11 percent of the food, and of these 2.5 percent
are predatory ground beetles (Carabide). April is the month of
greatest consumption of beetles, 29 percent, but no carabids are
eaten in this month. In June 22.5 percent of beetles are eaten, of
which 12 percent are carabids. The amounts eaten in other months
are Insignificant. The great bulk of the beetles eaten are the dark-
ling beetles (Tenebrionid), which have much the same habit of
living on the ground as the carabids, and are probably more abun-
dant in California. One stomach was entirely filled with them. ee ate 168
As this bird takes a great deal of gravel, the seeds eaten are soon
ground into paste, which renders specific identification impossible.
Many stomachs were entirely filled with food in this condition, which
accounts for the large amount of unidentified material. Very few
whole seeds were unidentified. The white-crown is evidently fond
of variety, for several stomachs contained as many as 9 different
species of seeds. It will be noted also that rough pigweed is the
favorite food, while the Arkansas goldfinch preferred bur thistle.
Miscellaneous vegetable matter amounts to 5 per cent, and was
found in 30 stomachs. Of these, 11 contained fragments of flowers,
probably of fruit trees, for in some cases the embryo fruit could be
made out. This is not a very heavy indictment on the score of
destroying buds and blossoms. Fibrous vegetable matter of uncer-
tain origin was found in quite a number of stomachs; perhaps it was
grass which had been subjected to the grinding action of the stomach.
SUMMARY.
Evidently neither the farmer nor the fruit grower has much to fear
from the white-crowned sparrow. On the contrary the bird destroys
some insects, all of which are harmful, and a vast number of seeds of
noxious weeds. The little fruit it eats is mostly wild, and its grain
eating is practically confined to the months when the only grain
available is waste or volunteer. In the above record there is little
to substantiate the accusation that the bird destroys fruit. buds, and
probably it is only under very exceptional circumstances that it does
any damage in this way.
78 . BIRDS OF CALIFORNIA AFFECTING FRUIT INDUSTRY.
GOLDEN-CROWNED SPARROW.
(Zonotrichia coronata. )
The golden-crowned sparrow arrives in California from the north
in September, and departs for its summer residence in April. In
winter it spreads over the country, lives wherever food can be obtained,
except perhaps in the forest, and may often be seen in the garden
among the fruit trees or in the rose bushes. It is also found in lonely
canyons or on the cattle ranges in the hills. In general appearance
and in food habits it does not differ essentially from the white-crown.
For the determination of its food 184 stomachs were available, taken
from October to April, inclusive. The animal food amounts to 0.9
percent, vegetable to 99.1.
Animal food.—The animal food consists of msects, and is pretty
well distributed among the various orders. No great quantity was
found in any one stomach, and it is eaten so rarely and in such small
quantities that the wonder is that it is eaten at all. Singularly
enough two worker honeybees were found in one stomach. It is
evident that the golden-crown does not search for insects, and takes
only those that come in its way.
Vegetable food—The vegetable food consists of fruit, buds and
flowers, grain, and some miscellaneous matter. Fruit can not be a
prominent item in the food of this sparrow, owing to the time of year
it spends in California. One stomach taken in March contained a
little fruit pulp, probably left over from the previous season. Fruit
was found also in 2 stomachs taken in October and in 2 taken in
November. In one it consisted of elderberries; in one, of grape; in
another, it was thought to be apple; while in the fourth, it was
unidentifiable. In all, it amounts to a little more than 1 percent
of the food. Remains of buds and flowers were found in stomachs
taken in every month of the bird’s stay in the State, except October
and November, when buds are very small. They were found in 56
stomachs; the average for the season is 29.5 percent, and in March
it rises to nearly 78 percent. Where this bird is abundant, it may do
mischief if it visits the orchards. In the stomach of no other species
yet examined has been found so much of this kind of food, which
makes it probable that much of the bud and flower eating imputed
to the linet and white-crown is really done by the golden-crown.
Grain was eaten during every month of the bird’s stay in the State,
but as none of these was a harvest month, little damage was done.
March, the sowing month, showed but little more than 5 percent,
while over 66 percent was eaten in January. The average for the
season was nearly 26 percent. It was found in 23 stomachs, of
which 12 contained oats; 6, wheat; 2, barley;2, corn; and 1, doubtful.
SPARROW FAMILY. 79
Weed seed amounts to 33 percent of the food and is eaten in every
month. It is, however, complementary to the bud and blossom
food, the one increasing as the other decreases. Weed seed begins
with a percentage of 83 in October, and gradually diminishes, while
buds and blossoms appear first in December with 22 percent and
increase to their maximum in April.
Below is a list of species identified, showing the number of stomachs
in which each was contained:
SEae Cae CUCOLORSOLIOG lo serts es eet ae a eine 27 eS ee ee Sh Poe ok 11
IME CON CAILLLCISICOUULG) a2 mae eerie eee et eek ek: 15
Paiitust bast ea (OCTLAUTCE MELILENSISi os aaa ate ts Se Yeh. 208 eh oa eee ede owes gy: 18
iNaointshaclenCSOlam i MigriLty) 36240 a2) fel Re cote. Be eee 16
npineiCupinus sp: se. .2 sce - is. eo ke ee er ee oe ee ee ee it
Clomerm CM OlLULIMES DL eee see nes are. a OA eS ele ke 8 Sees eee Z
Munkey amallemm CH remocanpus SCuigerus) 2... Po ee oe eteie Se bbw eee eee ee eee o2
RO ISORMOA Ka CLUN US GLUEESILOUG) 2... weer SAO lk Loe hei ets. sn Slee. 30
PAM HNL TeL A CEROU LUIS CUCULLOTIUTY) alo ak wrasse ahs ¢ Sb tds c'e as = ale cle one dee ee cs dee coed 16
Gera minimis (GCLOMUUMUGISSECLULNU Sarees hae hee LB UR Shales le noes 16
Ps beacele CL OSSCCUANNOTO) nanny: eens ee NP Wek oe ee Se cys a
OMe Huploweed (CA MOTAMLNIUS MELTOMLCLUS) 020-5... 5. S222 e 2 lass cel ee teed 18
SOMURtAVEN COI CRORELOROTUCTUSUS toa ees ee NO ome IL go See el at Eee ed +
Ohickweede(Sicilaniavmed1a 29.2 288s 2245.82.08 se ae Si ee ed 2 cab elle 10
CH el al oS A 115) 05) sai it Ree es gee OS age os eae ee 1
IGN WiECUM COLI GONUM SDS) haxke ie tees ee Soa: 2 522. bl ee ee 10
PSKOWIRGL (IROL CIE TS OS) sc cae sea ee Pe ae aa nO re 10
HSROMMEROT ARSC ORONUUSLAM eos ye Me Pi ee Sy Ra eee ee Ma)
SKSXG IRE) (( CL RAAPNSH Olen) aes ace oe ey a ne a ih
SKOBUGISL CHE COWDEN SN a ean ee eee ge 1
(Wimstdlerintic deren ene. ee ee A eke te i ote ae oe ee ciateese 39
The last item includes stomachs in which the food was ground to a
pulp, rendering identification impossible. Few whole seeds were
unidentified. Poison-oak seeds are indicated as found in 30 stomachs,
but as a matter of fact not a single seed of that plant was seen in any
stomach. The birds ate only the wax which surrounds those seeds
rand which contains certain woody granules by which it can at once
be identified. This species, then, does not aid in the dissemination of
these noxious plants.
SUMMARY.
From the foregoing it is evident that the golden-crown during its
stay in California does but little service in destroying insects. On
the other hand, it does no direct harm to fruit, and little, if any, to
grain. It does good by destroying weed seed, although not as much
as some other species. By the destruction of buds and blossoms it
may do serious harm where it is numerous and visits the orchards.
80 BIRDS OF CALIFORNIA AFFECTING FRUIT INDUSTRY.
2
WESTERN CHIPPING SPARROW.
(Spizella passerina arizone.)
The western chipping sparrow occurs during the breeding season
and early fall over most of the State, and winters sparingly in the
southern part. Like its eastern relative it is very domestic, and often
builds its nests in gardens and orchards. The bird well merits the
name socialis, now, unhappily, superseded, and its gentle and con-
fiding ways endear it to all bird lovers. It is one of the most insectiyv-
orous of all the sparrows, and is valuable in the garden or about the
farm.
For the investigation of this bird’s food 96 stomachs were available.
They were taken from April to October inclusive, and probably give
a fair idea of the food for that part of the year. It is quite likely
that the winter food consists largely, if not entirely, of weed seeds, as
4 stomachs taken in the southern part of the State in winter (not
included in this investigation) were almost entirely filled with this
food. The first division of the stomachs’ contents gives 45 percent
of animai food and 55 percent of vegetable.
Animal food.—The animal food consists of insects and spiders, with
afew bits of eggshell. Beetles were eaten from April to August inclu-
sive, with the maximum of 23 percent in July. In one stomach were
the remains of 30 weevils or snout beetles, but so badly crushed and
broken that specific identification was impossible. The average
monthly percentage is 6.7. Hymenoptera amount to 11.8 percent.
They are represented mostly by ants, with which several stomachs
were entirely filled. The greatest quantity were daten in June, when
they aggregated 67.5 percent, or more than four-fifths of the animal
food for the month. In the other months they were taken rather
irregularly and in small quantities.
Hemiptera are eaten to the average extent of 7.5 percent. They
appear rather irregularly, and the greatest consumption is in October,
20 percent. None were found in August or September stomachs, but
as only 4 were collected in October, and not many in the two previous
months, the record can not be considered as fully reliable. They con-
sist of stinkbugs and leafhoppers, with a few others, of which the
most interesting are scales and plant lice. These were each found in
5 stomachs. The scales were the black olive species (Saissetia olex).
Diptera, or flies, do not appear to be favorite food with the chipping
sparrow. They were eaten only in the months from April to July
inclusive, with the maximum consumption in May, when about 12
percent were taken, or more than half of all. The average per month
is only 3 percent.
Caterpillars are evidently the favorite animal food, as they were
eaten to an average extent of 14.7 percent, or more than any other
SPARROW FAMILY. 81
insect. They appear in the food during every month of the bird’s
stay in the north except October, and probably a greater number of
stomachs would have shown some in that month. Two stomachs
contained pupe of the codling moth. Only one stomach held grass-
hoppers, and that was taken in June. Some spiders and eggshells
make up nearly 1 percent, and complete the animal food.
Vegetable food.—Grain in the shape of oats was found in 5 stomachs,
all collected in July. The total amount for that month is 6 percent,
or less than 1 percent for the season. A mere trace of fruit was found
in one stomach in June. Weed seed was eaten in every month of the
bird’s stay, and probably throughout the year. It amounts to over
53 percent of the food, and in September rises to 98 percent. June
was the month of least consumption, 9 percent, when insects evidently |
took its place. The species identified, and the number of stomachs
in which each was found, are as follows:
iter inst lea (Cem Unuieds TRCUILCTSIS) 22-0 3= sees teas Pe A ek ol Sl oR ee 2
Niginishade (S Olan MONUM)) enact ae 2 Soe ee see Sees te td pete ete il
PMT Lean CLNOOU EL MACLEULOM Nine Net oR NES OE a ars oo aes cas obec bot ay
Minenclettuceslonid peroudta) —-.3.- suas 8226 ellis. bole 3
redemmaidsxcGalmannianmnenzerst) 25 ee ets cl ete boss ee 2
Rouweh pisweed (Amaranthus retrofiexus) 02.22... ett eee ees eter ag 16
Wintelowmec dS ecllonia media )=2 = 5422-25. 2 2 322 2-2-2 - 2 beet esse ee = 13
Kee ineeda@eOlUOGILU ND Sa) Manette Rie ms ee ee ol i ooo icleiaieis Sate 1
SIRT NV Chel CCITICADROLCTISG) naan a See ai ae ee ok oe ey Coke ee ce Shee eds 1
Mea Glowarbaccs (20045 0m) ease ee emer 2 (926 te tn eS SS. LR ee ne Sele 1
eal Cpotassy (ROM ICUIIU SON OUIUALE a. sant Bat OS os ele st ee Y 2
Wwaldioats (Avena jarug) i... => 5. a2 ESE ec ga Se aR ee eT 1
SECIS ((COMRGIP Sc) says sts ees co ae cP Z
Oana lem pec meer te eee ee ieee eee cat cet a de ES oS. Beinn oe coe bute BP
Most of the unidentified seeds were so badly ground up that it was
impossible to recognize the species. The greater part probably
belonged to species included in the above list. A few very small
grass seeds were not further identified.
Feeding the young.—A nest with 4 young of this species, about 6 days
old when first observed, was watched at different hours on four days.
On the morning of the fifth day a pair of jays carried off the young
birds. In the seven hours of observation 119 feedings were noted,
or an average of 17 feedings per hour, or four and one-fourth feedings
per hour to each nestling. This would give for a day of fourteen hours
at least 238 insects destroyed by the brood.
SUMMARY.
In the foregoing discussion of the food of the chipping sparrow it
plainly appears that the diet is made up almost exclusively of harm-
ful elements. No useful beetles of any consequence were eaten. Of
Hymenoptera, ants, which are either harmful or neutral, predominate,
38301—Bull. 34—10——6
82 BIRDS OF CALIFORNIA AFFECTING FRUIT INDUSTRY.
while caterpillars, which are a universal pest, are the favorite animal
food. In the vegetable portion of the diet fruit and grain appear as
mere traces, while the seeds of noxious weeds make up the bulk of
the food. It is not necessary to further eulogize this bird, as it is
already welcomed everywhere, as it should be.
WESTERN SNOWBIRD.
(Junco hyemalis thurbert and other subspecies. )
Several subspecies of junco occur in California. One form, J.
pinosus, is a resident of the Monterey Bay region the year round.
Another, thurberi, is a resident of the State throughout the year, but
winters in the valleys and breeds in the mountains. Two others,
oreganus and connectens, occur in winter only, when all the forms
spread out and cover a considerable part of the State. It would be
better to treat the four races separately, but as many of the stomachs
were collected before the races were recognized, their exact identity
is unknown. They will be discussed, therefore, as a whole, but what
is said of summer food will not apply to oreganus and connectens.
For this investigation 269 stomachs were available. They were
collected in every month except May. March, April, June, and
August are poorly represented, but the other months have each a
good quota. The first analysis of the food gives 24 percent of animal
matter to 76 of vegetable.
Anmal food.—Beetles amount to 5 percent, and nearly all were
eaten in the months from March to July inclusive, with no record
for May. With the exception of two ladybirds (Coccinellide) found
in 2 stomachs, not a useful species was identified in the whole.
Weevils make up the bulk of this 1tem, and a species of scolytid
(Phleosinus punctatus) was found in 1 stomach to the extent of
65 percent of its contents. Hymenoptera were represented mostly
by ants, with a few wasps, amounting in all to’a little more than 2
percent of the food. Caterpillars are apparently the favorite insect
food, forming 9.4 percent of the diet. The great bulk were eaten
from April to August, and the single stomach taken in August con-
tained 67 percent of them. No special pest was identified. Bugs,
grasshoppers, a few other insects, and spiders, make up the remainder
of the animal food, 7.3 percent.
Vegetable food.—Seeds of blackberry or raspberry were found in
1 stomach and elderberries in 2. In 14 stomachs taken in November
was found fruit pulp averaging over 11 percent of the food of the
month. As all fruit except olives is harvested before that time,
probably the berries were of no value.
Grain was eaten from October to March inclusive, and amounted
to 8 percent for the year. All of it was contained in 30 stomachs, as
SPARROW FAMILY. 83
follows: Oats in 15, wheat in 9, barley in 4, corn in 1, and unidenti-
fied in 1. None was taken in a harvest month. The greatest
amount, more than 30 percent, was eaten in March, the sowing
month, probably much of it from newly sown fields.
Weed seed aggregates 61.8 percent of the food, and was eaten in
every month. In September it amounted to nearly 95 percent. A
few seeds, mostly of grass, were not identified. The following is a
list of identified species and the number of stomachs in which each
was contained:
erraCedal CANON OSIOES Ds) em eset ne ater. tes Sts Bos oS 2 8 Pe 1
Mec aueMadia sales ern eee ema ee AL otros Stipes on se le kee 4
Wa e OR CANTER CT USICOLILLG eae tr oP PY Se ete a 6 Se sila it viatvpa, win sce facet eee ss he eee a
Bur thistle (Centaurea melitensis)....:-.....2------- Pl A Bere foe 25,5 eee 16
erm Os (SO/LCIUSIOS DCI) a ieme si me hat oS fcc e BeaS YSs soe tee 2
Mei saad eM(SOLAiRIGRUM erase ase Nano shack fa, 5 202.2. SS el 8, 11
Meng thes GEIL DINUSIE De ees OM ese aie tae Eo ole ke SA 1
Ma Wee (GEG OM OHLETS O)E ale e e aee 1
OTS Onia@ ake CRUMUSEAUUCTSULOOG) = tee ease ae et oa oe Se tl eelyece nels cee 13
Palin va CHL OCU CUCULORULND has. hn Sess rete OM Se eine oles nwt eee e ene So ee eee 34
Geranium. (Geranium dissectum)...--..----+------ eee ret Oe EG eee 4
MUISUAL CM COTOSSUCORNUOTO Ne stereo sees te ens CME ose bn en ke 3
Mamerssletbuce@VOnNid perfOUdid) =see. 2625 see a2 = eet ae kt kote Slee 13
PVCOmIM alsa (OOlLUNOMNIG MENZIES) tae ne eee etn oS ek eee Se 2
EMU LATNeN COT UC CON OLENOCEO,) 9 ered, Nec se Be a So ys os Bare Sa hs ke ee bee it
aug apie weeds CAMOTANLNUS EMO ICLUS) 22222252. 528825. 5. 2b tee lee be eee ce 35
ES UUIIAVM OSICROMLLONG ID CNSUS) aces AeA AS ete SL BS oo cic baw ce be Rowse ose ee 9
SplinelkeCe Ca USLCl ani auIN CULO) meses eS Sele a. id Sk Sot ee ee Bd enn Co wee ae 42
(CEURELTIBRY (SOUT Oe oe p Coe Sirk ett eee ee 21
AGiOMMCe UNC ZOLGOMILIL SD: ania s selec ads ee bho wie he We eed sees 33
SOREL, (UC WYO PIE ID NS Ge oc ep I ee ea 26
\AUTIIGL ORES). (CA OGG KOLITIGD SE ine oe al SP Oe ae ee 8
‘Cinaolony, JOUR (UTA DSO) 4, Mencken nen ip Sete aes aa are ns aR 1
REAM CT ASSN CU NICU SON) May ee ul Oh eee OP ee ea 3
SBIEO (GERAIS OS) cs ge a ee 14
Wommerous seeds mot identitied::: . 0-2... 20. ee Loe ede eet ee eee es 4
imircemi i edemmner ent teeth oe eo ae aoe SS oh 2c2 eee oe 2
Remains of blossoms were found in 1 stomach. The seeds of
poison oak were not discovered in the stomachs, but the characteristic
eranules that are embedded in the waxy coating of the seeds were
identified, thus showing that the birds eat this wax without swallow-
ing the seed itself.
SUMMARY.
The insect food of the snowbirds is composed almost entirely of
harmful species, of which caterpillars form the largest item. Snow-
birds do no damage to fruit or grain. They eat large quantities of
weed seeds, thereby rendering a service to agriculture,
84 BIRDS OF CALIFORNIA AFFECTING FRUIT INDUSTRY.
WESTERN SONG SPARROW.
(Melospiza melodia samuelis, heermani, and other subspecies. )
Song sparrows inhabit not only the greater part of California but
all of the United States, except areas where conditions are unsuitable.
These birds vary much in habits, as well as in size and coloration.
Some forms live along streams bordered by deserts, others in swamps
among bulrushes and tules, others in timbered regions, others on
rocky barren hillsides, and still others in rich fertile valleys. Each
area has its peculiar form, and in fact it is hard to imagine any locality
adapted to a land bird of the Temperate Zone which does not fit some
form of the song sparrow. With such a variety of habitat, the food
of the species necessarily varies considerably. It is impossible to
treat here the several forms separately, and the best we can do is to
give a general idea of the yearly diet of the species as a whole.
For the investigation of the food of the western song sparrows, 321
stomachs, belonging to 4 or 5 subspecies, were available. They
were collected in every month of the year, and fairly represent the
whole State. The first analysis separates the food into 21 percent
of animal matter and 79 of vegetable. This is less animal food than
is eaten by the snowbird, much less than by the chipping sparrow,
but much more than by the white-crowned or golden-crowned
sparrows. |
Animal food.—Animal food, consisting principally of insects, is
eaten with a fair degree of regularity through the year. Beginning
with a minimum of 3 percent in September, based on the examina-
tion of 97 stomachs, it rises gradually to a maximum of over 71
percent in May. Beetles are the largest item, and a greater or less
number were eaten every month except December, an omission
probably accidental. The average for the year is 6.6 percent. In
June, the month of greatest consumption, nearly 29 percent were
eaten. With the exception of the remains of tiger beetles (Cicin-
delidz) in 3 stomachs and predaceous ground beetles (Carabide) in
10, all were of harmful families, the leaf beetles (Chrysomelide) and
weevils (Rhynchophora) being most prominent.
Hymenoptera (bees, wasps, and ants) were taken very irregularly,
and amount to only 3 percent of the food. Ants were found in 22
stomachs, and bees and wasps in 20. Hemiptera, or bugs, form only
about 2 percent of the year’s food, but 17 percent of the food eaten
in May. The black olive scale was found in 2 stomachs and a species
not identified in 1. Leafhoppers, spittle insects (Cercopide), and
a few other forms make up the rest of this item. Diptera (flies) were
eaten from May to September inclusive. In May they amount to
over 11 per cent, but fall away rapidly, and the aggregate for the
year is only 2 percent. 35 220 2S a ee Be ee ee eee 3
Unidentified esse 2S ye ae en a ae ee 34
Another article of the towhee’s food is mast. It issomewhat difficult
to distinguish between mast and weed seed when both are ground to a
pulp. As divided, however, mast amounts to 15.6 percent of the
SPARROW FAMILY. 89
food. It was found in moderate quantities in stomachs collected
from September to February inclusive, and in April also it reached
25 percent, with a trace in June. February was the month in which
most was eaten, 46.5 percent. It was found in only 22 stomachs,
but 8 of them were completely filled with it. Leaf galls and some
unidentified vegetable matter make up a little more than 3 percent,
and complete the vegetable food.
SUMMARY.
The spotted towhee is not numerous enough to inflict any great
damage, whatever its food habits. Should it become very abundant
it might do harm to fruit; but it is so shy that the more the country
is cleared and settled the more rare is it likely to become.
CALIFORNIA TOWHEE.
(Pipilo crissalis and senicula.)
In rural communities on the Pacific coast, the California towhee
occupies a place similar to that of the robin in the east. It is quite
domestic in habits, and not only is it a familiar sight about orchards
and gardens, but it often builds its nest in the shrubbery and vines
around the house. Its habits are somewhat more terrestrial than
those of the robin, and the fruit it eats is largely that which it finds
on the ground. Like the spotted towhee, it forages much under
bushes and vines, scratching among the rubbish for food; however, it
does not confine itself to such places, but frequents also the open
ground, looking for insects and seeds. At such times a pair are
almost invariably seen together. The species does not migrate.
One or other of its subspecies inhabits most of the valley and foot-
hill country of California west of the Sierra Nevada and San Jacinto
mountains. ;
For the study of the bird’s food 399 stomachs were available, col-
lected in every month, with a fair number in each month. The first
analysis gives 14.26 percent of animal food to 85.74 of vegetable.
The animal food consists of insects and a few spiders, millepeds, and .
snails. The vegetable part is made up of fruit, grain, weed seeds,
and a few miscellaneous substances.
Animal food.—The largest item of the animal food consists of bee-
tles, which amount to 5 percent. The predaceous ground beetles
(Carabidee) were found in 30 stomachs, and were the only useful
beetles eaten. Weevils, or snout beetles, were found in 55 stomachs,
of which 1 contained 15. Among them was identified one speci-
men of Calandra oryza, the rice weevil, an insect that does much harm
to rice. A decidedly harmful species of chrysomelid beetle (Diabro-
tica soror) was found in 43 stomachs. All the other beetles, which
belong to several families, are harmful. While beetles were eaten in
every month except December, the great bulk were taken from April
90 BIRDS OF CALIFORNIA AFFECTING FRUIT INDUSTRY.
to July, inclusive. In June they amount to nearly 15 percent, which
is the highest for any month.
Hymenoptera amount to less than 2 percent. They consist of ants
found in 47 stomachs and bees or wasps in 23 stomachs. Hemiptera,
or bugs, are eaten to a small extent in nearly every month, but do
not reach a high percentage in any. The maximum, 6 percent, occurs
in March. The average is barely 1 percent forthe year. The favorite
kinds appear to be leafhoppers, shield bugs, and stinkbugs. Black
olive scales were found in 11 stomachs, and a second species, not
identified, in 1.
Caterpillars are eaten sparingly in every month. The amount for
the year is 3.26 percent, and the maximum consumption, 8.5 percent,
occurs in March. Pupe of the codling moth were found in 2 stom-
achs. Grasshoppers and crickets amount to 2.5 percent for the year.
In July they aggregate nearly 16 percent, which is a remarkably
small amount for such a confirmed ground feeder as the towhee.
They are eaten rather irregularly from April to October inclusive,
with a trace in January. The remainder of the animal food, consist-
ing of a few flies and other insects, spiders, millipeds, and snails,
amounts to a little more than one-half of 1 percent.
The following insects were identified in the stomachs:
COLEOPTERA.
Bradycellus rupestris. Aphodius rubidus.
Philonthus albtonicus. , Diabrotica soror.
Tachy porus californicus. Blapstinus pulverulentus.
Hypnoides ornatus. Blapstinus rufjipes.
Ptilinus ruficornis. Notoxus alamede.
Aphodius rugifrons. Calandra oryza.
HEMIPTERA.
Saissetia olex.
LEPIDOPTERA.
Carpocapsa pomonella.
Vegetable food—Fruit was eaten in every month from April to
October inclusive, and also in December and January. The total for
the year is 4.4 percent of the food. The greatest quantity was taken
in June, when it amounted to 9.3 percent. Fruit, consisting of pulp
and skins without seeds, was contained in 24 stomachs, Rubus fruits
(blackberries or raspberries) in 28, cherries in 4, strawberries in 3,
and elderberries in 41. Thus the towhee does no great damage to
fruit—in fact, the fruit eaten is mostly wild or that which has been
injured and left on the ground.
Grain is eaten regularly in every month and in a fair quantity.
It amounts for the year to about 28 percent. The most is taken in
fall and winter, though the variation is not very marked. August
appears to be the month of greatest consumption, but it is doubtful -
if this would hold true if more stomachs were examined, as October
SPARROW FAMILY. 91
is about the same. June shows a higher percentage than either May
or July, which indicates that some of the grain was gathered from
the harvest field. Oats were the favorite kind, found in 140 stom-
achs. Barley was contained in 34, wheat in 16, and corn in 6. Six-
teen stomachs were filled with grain alone, most of them with oats,
but several with barley and one with corn.
The towhee is another of those species whose standard food is weed
seed. It amounts to nearly 51 percent of the yearly diet. Even in
June, the month of least consumption, it amounts to one-fifth of the
food, while in December it reaches its maximum, 83.6 percent; but
a good percentage is eaten in every month, no matter what other food
is at hand.
Weed seed was found in 304 stomachs, and 46 contained nothing
else. The quantity of this seed consumed by the towhees of Cali-
fornia In one year must be enormous. The following are the species
identified and the number of stomachs in which each was found:
PSUUTU BONIS (SEA VGH OE VIS LES OS) ara ace re eae os a a ih
leessermtanwecdaClenmizOnia fasciculata) = 222.2. 5e- oe 2 os. ct set ete tenet. 7
aWeede Mad CrsaltUd) ae ene ete anew ee ge ONO Fl Daca ese Se eS 34
IMiaivawicre Cl @AILEILCTILES COLCULIL nets eet tae 4 iets aes oe hea oad cs ates Su Slate ios Sal 6
Miilikeciistlen(SUpOUMIn aman) es 28a ioe es CBee De ks eens Sse ees 1
larabhistles(Ceniaurcamelttensis)\ es eee as ee eye Ale hae we ac a oe Fete Se 39
Plilrewiee Cu (CANTSUILCKUGILESSCLOLQ) oat mye eon eR ee See ck, eal. a $e Se eee 4
INA Insinaicdl ex (CS OVC Ui VO RUT) aime ates Se a NI ae Se ae oe aah hele De
elena uma CAT LAO OMG CCOLOIG ie. et te ee ees lo el llc. ee ih
aoe RTP UT sas pe) He amen es oe Re eee tw 2 es ove ns See 19
Clover Glnfoliwmi sp.)5--2 oaset se o.oo: gis ee Ss A Ey Oe ere mR 9
Legumes not further identified........ Oe eh EGS Deed nN May 39
Mikey ulllem: EHnenocannos: setiqenus) 0.212. 2 2.. jay be. Je yl sel ne be eee 5
ROISOMEOs Kal CAUIESKOLUCTSULOUG exe nee fal of AreSIS yao Bln Sixes S Dog- Se Beeld Slee se 7
AMM bcural ae (GH ROMMUMECICILLOTUUNT a roe sees hoot) Pees. lode ees eectuce os 55
Gre raramuurnne (GiChOMU UN AUSSCCLULNY \ Ss sot vea sae 8S ote ok Oh gk oe eo ew ccs l de cece te es (
Beliovmcorrele(O7asiconmicu laid) s2- 8s eo. coe ban Jae eee 4
Mints balm CNOSSTCOUGTON ant earned Meera 2 2h! Pl a ss ee oe ase eo 10
aia CHISCHSCHOLIZICRCHLJONILECH Sieh Gare i So eee tayo wl De Sec eed Se 2
Mianetsalettuceievlontva penfOoudia) =. 2022 to S29 soi Lee oe eae ee sole 26
Evedemmard sa (Alama taNMeNZest sees 2 eee she ot eos. die 4
IOC CCM ENCO DOOM IDM) anes t ee ae Nein yo) fee Roa tte Sows So ces bee I
NOUOMmOIEWECUnCATALGTULNIUS TELLO/LELUS).- 2% io. SS Se elk Sse oe fig
SOUUBTRV OSD CLO LUL OM ONUCTISIS) sean aee ht se co ene iat 2 2S ie ee is See 2
WimekawecdaGsicllamaemedia i 2 2 20 2S EI be Si) eee tents ge este Alf
RHEL ON SNOUT AUD TSI Oi) ees I A SN A a 5
Kno Gecds (2 0l/GONUNU SPs) tr. 2.205. .c desks bees as oee dhe i ceases nee nee 5
Nioiishadew(Solanmnnigriim) a= ssstaee As ese oe be ee ene eee cae it
puiraclover MUEdiCAgOMlanceOlatd) eam sen. 2 Kot, a SS Le Pee da Ne cob ec ee Sok 2
I OISOMMO DIEM ISIAUYCISULOUG) mera it Ue iene Soe ee oe oa a Paes ae decane s back i
SUUTDONE (UR OUIS BHO Nos eee See See i es ae 8 Es On a il
PAC fall pint ea @L OG VIL IIE CUCULULRUULTIO ele eae yn 2 AE es So 96 le oe See ded Sal ede be See eee ay
Geran G CRI MAAUSSCCUULT ine ke oe caeae Se Dabcels oo cat ode ce eS Ser nu cane enews 13
Dwain dll One CMGLUGMOCUIAN OIG) = cujo- ea ws Pete ae does Do tees soe oes des eee te 1
ECM AIG SEE ONGIINTUINENZ1ES1) 82 oe ea eS ons ch aseces steel Be 6
ousmepIcweed. (Amaranthus etroflerus).. 02.22.55 ee face hee oe ee nt ew ee 3
WlnekaveedeOStellamanedid naa suse aos 2 = ses aa Soko ds cease el odessa ha ot 13
VEO TEE! {LOMA OG TALC: SHS | ga ea aN 2
DORRCIN Gi INTCTAOCCLOSCLIM ame aes eee Pe St 8 oot ce onde ie mi bee See be 1
Wirawelle mictive cmap rye ec te ent: 6 Yn at os ee te no ee ee eee 24
Food of young—Among these stomachs are those of 17 nestlings,
varying in age from 2 to 8 days. The youngest brood, composed of
3, had been fed entirely on beetles, Hymenoptera, and caterpillars.
For convenience, codling moth pupze may be separated from other
_ caterpillars. The average percentage of each was as follows:
Beetles 0.7, Hymenoptera 0.7, caterpillars 92.3, codling moth pups
6.3. Note the large percentage of soft food in the shape of cater-
pillars and pups. Broods 2 and 3 were composed of 3 and 4 nestlings
respectively, and were probably about 1 day older than brood 1.
Their stomachs were entirely filled with animal food, divided as
follows: Beetles 15 percent, caterpillars 55.4 percent, codling moth
pupe 23 percent, scales 2.6 percent, and other insects and spiders 4
percent. These nestlings had been fed with hard beetles to a much
96 BIRDS. OF CALIFORNIA AFFECTING FRUIT INDUSTRY.
greater extent than brood 1, although only 1 day older. Brood 4
was composed of 4 nestlings about a week old. They had been fed
on animal matter to the extent of 96 percent to 4 percent of vegetable.
The animal food was divided as follows: Beetles 67.6 percent, Hyme-
noptera 3 percent, caterpillars 2 percent, scales 20.7 percent, and
egoshells 2.7 percent. The vegetable matter consisted of hulls of
seeds and rubbish. The increase in beetles and other hard food and
the decrease in caterpillars in the diet of this brood, as compared
with the younger ones, is very marked. Brood 5 contained 3 young,
estimated to be 8 days old. These had been fed entirely on animal
food, made up of the following elements: Beetles 82 percent, Hyme-
noptera 10 percent, scales 6.3 percent, larve 3.3 percent, insects’
eggs 1.7 percent, and spiders 2.7 percent. Another increase in the
hard elements of the food over the last is seen here, although the ,
difference in age is presumed to be only a day.
Observations were made upon the feeding of nestling grosbeaks,
but the results are not remarkable.