Page:Bird-lore Vol 06.djvu/219

 180 Bird - Lore

prior to their capture, zrg locusts and 247 other insects, besides two micet One at the Owls hall eaten a small bird, but it had also eaten 12 locusts and 3 other insects,

Mrr George c. Jones, of Fairﬁeld County, Connecticut, says: “I think the smaller species of Owls feed upon the ctttworm to some extent. I have found cutworms in the stomach of the common Screech Owl. The iact that both the cntworms and the Owls are nocturnal leads me to bellcve that the Owls, of all the birds, are the most efﬁcient extermi- nators of this formidable pest and should on this account receive protection. The farmers here are large growers of tobacco, and the damage done by the cutworm to the young plants and the labor of resetting forced upon the growers is almost incalculable. I believe that if our native Owls were as plenty as some other spect s of birds the ravages of this destructive worm would be tnuch less than at present." (

Dr. A. K. Fisher, in his report on the Screech Owl (Bull. Not 3, Div. of Ornithologv U. 3. Dept. Aglr) says: "Their economic relations ‘are ot the greatest importance, particu~ larlv on account of the abundance of the species in many of the farming districts, and who- ever tlestwys them through ignorance or prejudice should be severely Condemned,”

In his summary of the results of the examination of the stomach contents of 255 Screech Owls. he gives the following valuable facts: r contained poultry; 38, other birds; how- ever, many at these were English Sparrows, the well-known introduced pest; or had been eating mice; rr, other mammals; too. insects; 32 had been eating an assorted diet of lizards. tish, spiders. crawﬁsh, scorpions, etc., and a; stomachs were empty.

This brief outline of the life-history and economic value of the Screech Owls is pre- sented to the farmers, fruit-growers and school children of the country, with the hope that it will create in them a desire to study and protect this very valuable and interesting class of birds.

Study Points for Teachers and Students

Trace distribution of the Screech Owls on the map Relate some of the lile~history of the Screech Owls from your own observations. Describe breeding places you have found. If in a tree, what kind? What is the botanical name of the tree? Give your own reasons why Screech Owls should be protected Who was Aristotle? Tell something interest- ing about him.

For additional valuable information regarding the Screech Owls. consult the reference books named in leaﬂet No. 8. also " First Annual Report of the United States Entomo- logical Commission Relating to the Rocky Mountain Locust," Government Printing omce, Washington, D. C.