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Economic Ornithology in Recent Entomological Publications

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Economic Ornithology in Recent Entomological Publications Vol. 1918XXXVJ J RecentLiterature. 251 that the birds from the coastregion north of San FranciscoBay are differ- ent from either of the above. Thesehe separatesas A. californicaooclep- fica (p. 413), type locality Nicasio. He alsodiffers from Dr. Oberholser'srecent conclusionthat A. hypoleuca is merelya race of A. californica,as maintained in the A. O. U. ' Check-List,' and would giveit full specificrank. The factsin regardto this groupwould seemto be now before us and any differenceof treatment must be due to personalopinion.-- W. S. Wetmore on Pal•sochenoides mioceanus Shufeldt. •-- This name wasbased upon the fossilizeddistal end of the right femur of a bird which Dr. Shufeldt consideredas related to the Anseres. Quoting from Dr. Shufcldt'spaper we find "that this femar neverbelonged to any bird at all relatedto Sula, or to any of the Herons,or to Pelecanus,all of which havefemora possessed of somecharacters, which, though not of wide dif- ference,are quite sufficientto constitutediscriminating ones, and to point to the fact that this great extinctfowl did not belongin any of those groups,as we know them, osteologically." Now comes Mr. Wetmore with the results of another careful examination of this samebone fragment and we readthat of five charactersof the fernre' "Pal•eochenoidesagrees with the Steganopodesin four, while in only one doesit approachthe Anseres.... and it is referredwithout question to the Steganopodes."He fm•her suggeststhat it was a Pehcan-likebird of a somexvhatgeneralized type showingresemblances to the Gannetsand remotely to the Cormorants and Darters. It would seem desirable that those who name fossil birds should not fashiontheir genericnames on thoseof existingbirds as it is embarrassing to find them shifted into other families or orders where the name becomes somewhat of a misnomer! Mr. Wetmore's argument in the present case seemsmuch the more convincingof the two that have been presented.-- W. S. Economic Ornithology in recent Entomological Publications.- Some interesting original observationsof the relations of birds to insect pestshave recently been publishedby entomologists. They relate to the following insects: Potato aphid (Marcrosiphumsolanifolii). This new pest, becauseof the thoroughnessand insidiousnessof its attacks,is popularlyknown as the "Kaiser bug:' in Ohio where it destroyedmany potato fields. The followingbirds were observedactively feedingon the aphids: Chipping Sparrow,Quail, and English Sparrow? • The Relationships of the Fossil Bird Palaeochenoidesmioceanas. By Alexander Wet- more. The Journal of Geology, XXV, No. 6, Sept.-Oct., 1917. a Houser,J. S., Guyton, T. L. and Lowry, P. R, Bull. 817, Ohio Agr. Exp. Sta., Nov. 1917, 252 RecentLiterature. [April[' Auk Thesweet-potato leaf-folder (Pilocrocis tr•i•unctata). This Pyralid moth larva was found to be very injurious to sweet potatoes near Browns- ville, Texas. Mr. M. M. High who studiedit there, statesthat the Boat- tailed Grackle, feeds upon this speciesamong "a number of insectsthat attack truck cropsand particularly on larvre..... Observed it first feeding on the cabbagelooper (Autographa brassiceeRiley) in 1913, two days after cabbagehad been sprayed •vith an arsenical. Some speciesof larvre after being poisonedhave a habit of crawling to the top of the leaves of the plant upon which they are f•eding before dying, and here they fall easy prey to the grackle. The poison apparently doesnot seriouslyaffect the birds, sincenone have been found dead in the vicinity of sprayed crops." • The pecan-leaf ease-bearer (Acrobasi• nebulella). The larva of this Phycitid moth is a seriouspest in the southern part of the pecan growing district. "Three speciesof birds--the Bhm Jay, .... Mockingbird,.... and the Orchard Oriole .... --have been observed feeding upon the larva of the pecan-leaf case-bea•r. Thesc birds, as well perhaps as those of other species,do much to checkthe ravagesof this pest, and their protec- tion in the pecan orchard should be encouraged. The Blue Jay very likely is more beneficial than harmful to the pecan grower. In thc writer's opinionthe goodthat this bird doesin feedingupon injurious pecan insects morethan offsetsthe injury that it is accusedof doingin the fall of the year, when it may take a fc•v nuts from the pecan trees." • The fall webworm ( Hyphantria textor). The facts concerningthe serious-• ncssand ubiquity of this pestneed no restatement. Dr. C. GordonHewltt informsus that, "The studyof the natural controlof the fall webwormwas extendedto Nova Scotia.in 1916, and it is interesting to record that of the different factors opcr•ting in the reduction of this insect the Red-eyed Vireo, Vireosylvaol•vacea L., appearsto be the most important. It was estimatedthat about 40 per cent of the larva had been destroyedin the websby this bird at the five observationpoints." • Other really effective bird enemiesof the fall webworm,on the basisof their recordin thc United States are the Yellow-billed Cuckoo and Baltimore Oriole. The emperormoth (Samia cecropia). This large moth, while attracting considerableattention on accountof its sizecan hardly be classedas a pest. Dr. Hewitt's comment on its bird enemies,nevertheless, is of interest. "Studies in the natural control,"of this moth, he says,"have beenmade, and .... it was found that most of the cocoonswere destroyed by wood-- peckers" (op. cit., p. 9). West Indian mole cricket (Scapter•iscusviegnus). In a recent important bulletin a on this "most seriouspest of generalagriculture in Porto Rico," • In Bull. 609, U.S. Dept. Agr., by Thos. H. Jones, Nov. 22, 1917, p. 9. a Gill, J. B., Bull 571, U. S. Dept. Agr., Dec. 15, 1917, pp. 14-15. • Rep. Dominion Entomologist, 1917, p. 8. 4 Van Zwaluwenburg, R. H., Bull. 23, Porto Rico Agr. Exp. Sta., Feb. 12, 1918, pp.. 18-19. Vol. 1915XXXVJ J RecentLiterature. 253 full considerationis given to bird enemies.Wetmore's account • of {he subjectis quotedalmost in full ar/d the statementmade that "The most efficientenemies of the changaare to be foundamong the native birds."-- W. L. M. Protection of Military Carrier-Pigeons.--An interesting article s by ProfessorHenri Blanc,informs us that the Military and Interior Depart- lnentsof the Swissgoverrtment in 1915 demandedthat a warfare be carried on throughout Switzerlandagainst birds of prey capableof destroying Carrier Pigeonsin flight with messages. In followingthis order someof the cantonsoffered bounties of as much as four francsper bird. From Sept. 11 to Dec. 13, 1915, ProfessorBlanc states, 86 hawks were pre- sented for identification at the museum of which he is curator. Among these were 11 Cerchneistinnunculus and 17 Buteo vulgaris which are deemed especiallyuseful species. ExaminatiOn of the stomachsof some of these birds revealedonly small rodents in those of the lochnerspecies and large grasshoppersand small rodents in those of the latter. Examination of the stomachsof Accipiter nisus, Astur pah•mbariusand Falco peregrinusyielded only remainsof small birds, and in one caseof a chicken. "On the basis of these autopsies,"the author says, "one must concludethat the rapaciousbirds killed in the canton of Vaud in 1915 have not done the assumeddamage to the carrier pigeonsof the a•ny." The total number of birds of prey killed in Switzerlandin 1915 was 806, of which 506 were Accipiter nisus, 159 Astur palumbariusand 35 Falco peregrint•s. This is a very high percentage(more than 80) of destntctive bird hawks, and showsgq'eater success in restrictingslaughter to these speciesthan has been.attained in similar campaignsin the United States. A recent issue of the Official Bulletin • infm•ns us that the United States army alsois losingsome of the carrierpigeons in training,but from another cause. The Bulletin says"Any pigeonin the air may be a carrierpigeon flying from.a loft undergovernment supervision. Its destructionmay be a seriousloss to the American Army. All personstherefore, are urged to refrain from the shootingof pigeonsand to discouragethe practice." The birdsbear bandswith the legend"U. S. A.-- 18" and personsconting into possessionof any birds so markedare requestedto report the fact to the ChiefSignal Officer, Land DiviSion, Washington, D. C.-- W. L. M. Birds Probably not Distributors of Hog Cholera.-- The followingis quoted from the Annual Report of the Chief of the Bureau of Animal Industry,U.S. Departmentof Agriculturefor 1917(p. 48). "The belief that birdsplay an importantpart in the spreadof hogcholera led to some 1 Bull. 326, U.S. Dept. Agr., 1916, pp. 9, 10, 21, 31, 32. a Destruction des Oiseauxrapaces diurnes dans le canton de Vaud et en Suissependant Fannee 1915. Bull. Soc. Vaud. Sci. Nat., 51, 1917, pp. 315-319. * Washington, D.C. Feb. 5, 1918, p. 8. .
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