Show BIRDS B I R D S OF 0 F UTAH UTA H VII on Prof Birds s Goodwin That n Feed in the Air Reported by J H Paul Director of Nature Study at the State Normal Hi I cannot hope to touch upon all the th Itah birds that feed in the air but at least one of oC then them may be taken up with some measure of fullness Birds that belong in this group pre present present present sent certain advantages as objects of study over oer those that find their food In to more sheltered places The bird that thatIs Is compelled to remain in the open or orto orto orto to take up ap a station on a fence post or the top wire of a fence orto orta or to circle out from a plead lead limb in a tree top may be much more satisfactorily ob observed observed served ered than the active feeders in the thees es or those which slide and hitch about bout on the treo tree trunk or remain in inthe Inthe Inthe the deep woods or sail saU leisurely about far overhead Fourth Grade Emblem The matter of availability in this case as in the work for the preceding grades is one ono that must receive first consideration The selection of the bird emblem for forthe forthe forthe the fourth grade the Arkansas king kingbird bird was not made without some mis misgivings misgivings givings but the tho fact that the family to t which the one finally final chosen be belongs belongs belongs longs is perhaps more generally and widely distributed than any other of oC this group finally determined the waiter watter The Tho flycatchers are art represented in Itah tah by at least a dozen forms Corms and I Isome some of oC these are to be found Cound in overy every locality into which I have gone and nd though the birds differ in color size and notes they all have in common th the thA feeding habits which are aro principal principally ly a characteristic of ot these birds V ithone Uh ith one or two exceptions they are quiet almost noiseless birds They take up upa a station on some ome limb or pout post from Crom which they thy sally forth without any In Interference interference and there they will remain for an hour or more mildly looking about apparently with no thought or purpose or aim in life lite This Tills attitude of pt repose is now and again suddenly rind nd unexpectedly disturbed by a quick I sh h out into the air after some Invisible in invisible InVIsible visible creature and a return to the point of departure sometimes followed by the call peculiar to the species un under under under der observation The Arkansas Kingbird The group for this the fourth grade I have termed Birds That Feed In the Air and the bird selected for forthe forthe forthe the emblem of or the grade is the Arkan Arkansas sas flycatcher 1 While it Is true truo this bird Is not the most beautiful of its clan neither can an it lay claim to being the most at attractive attractIve attractive of ot its tribe but it is the most widely distributed and the most insist insistent insistent ent nt upon receiving attention from the community in which it decides to build its home homeI I have found this flycatcher to the north orth east south and west wherever Yn fact that I have gone This king kingbird kingbird kingbird bird may be looked for tor along the streets of towns from the tree tops of ot which will come such a chattering and screeching as only this fellow can be responsible for He will be met in large Jarge cottonwoods along the rivers of oC oCr our cur r state in the stunted cedars on the hills far from rom human habitation in inthe Inthe Inthe the canyons canyon everywhere in fact where material may be had for nest building and a site which will meet the not demands of ot crU tails cults i 2 The food of oC this form like that of or its eastern relative is ill made up of ot insects a large part of at which are of ot injurious kinds Professor Aughey found these birds feeding on the Rocky Mountain locust in tn Nebraska and examination ex of the stomach con contents contents contents tents of oC these birds has shown that they are destroyers of oC large numbers of ot grasshoppers in seasons and localities ties where this pest abounds It also takes freely moths butterflies winged ants tHese flies caterpillars and crickets This bird in common with the east eastern eastern eastern ern kingbird has been accused of tak taking takIng taking ing bees In order tg t test this matter ma ter stomachs of ot the tho Arkansas kingbird were examined In the biological biological cal survey It was found Cound that the birds had taken thirty honey honeybees hone honeybees bees twentynine of which were drones A California bee keeper ex examined examined examined over JOO stomachs with same results The conclusion arrived at by b this Oils investigation was that the bee eating habit Is only occasional and ac accidental accidental and that t at in tho the destruction of oC drones the kingbird renders a real service In place of an Injury Song Sona and Habits 3 So far ap u my observation has extended ex extended extended tended those these birds I would say have no song but they the certainly have cries and calls and screeches enough to tomake tomake tomake make up any apparent deficiency In ht the direction of ot facilities for Cor ex expressing expressing expressing pressing their very er positive opinions During Durin the early carl part of ot the season and while the nest Is II under way and andeen even een during the period when the ut utmost utmost utmost most exertions of the parents birds are necessary to keep the rapidly growing youngsters supplied with food the incessant clatter and chatter hatter of these birds rarely ceases Whether they tho are fighting fi flying or 01 feeding they never neer miss an opportunity of using their voice 4 In the matter of ot general habits that are characteristic of this bird He Is a positive dogmatic hot tem tempered brawling fellow He loves a fight like the sons of the Emerald Isle just for foi the fun of fighting In the early spring it is quite com common common common mon to find these fellows screeching out to each other in terms the most expressive in their vocabulary what each thinks of the other and then with as much apparent pleasure as if ifa Ifa ifa a feast foost were In prospect they fly Into the open and there a general free Cor Corall all fight follows Often the birds will chatter and fight and md become so much interested in what they are doing that they will fall to the ground clutching each other and continuing the settlement settle settlement settlement ment of oC their difficulties on the ground My experience does not agree with that of Professor Beale who records the fact that these th se birds prefer to live among the scattering oaks on the lonely hillside rather than in the orchard and about the ranch build buildIngs buildIngs buildings Ings I have found them in just such localities lo localities localities as the professor specifies Over Oer at Doremus they are ar quite common making use of stunted cedars for nest nesting nestIng nesting ing purposes and I have hae found them along rivers at a considerable dis distance distance distance tance from any dwelling But I have also found them nesting within ten feet of rot a hotel window In Wayne a e coun ty between the hotel door and a nd the D DR DR DR I R Q G tracks about four rods in Emery county and building in iii the poplars along the principal street and within a block of the busiest corner of Vernal in Uintah county I also have found them about ranches in trees close to houses on the State road between Provo and Pleasant Grove and In many other similar lo Io localities localities The Utah birds of this fam family famIly family ily seem quite domestic as are arc the eastern birds The Kingbirds Nest 5 In the construction of its nest this bird uses a most interesting va variety variety of material Coarse twigs and weed stalks are used in the foundation work and for the outer walls then the finer plant fibers rootlets wool hair feathers thistle down string when whoa available and sometimes pieces of pa paper paver paper per ver This bulky collection of oC material Is generally woven into a fairly com compact compact compact pact net nest The nest is rarely placed very far above the ground generally among the lower branches of trees Sometimes these birds select curious places in which to build their th lr nest In Instances Instances Instances stances have been reported in which this kingbird had made use of a much flattened nest of ot Bullock Oriole which it relines and makes n akes to be its own an abandoned robins nest has been used for tor a similar purpose Other cases are on record where a fence tence was used on one one side of which a board had been nailed and this board partly protected the nest The most unusual instance In Inthis Inthis inthis this connection is that of the repeated attempts of or kingbirds to build on the outer end of a windmill fan 6 From four to five eggs are laid practically practical of the same color as tease of the eastern castern kingbird but averaging a little smaller 7 During the period of incubation which requires from twelve to thirteen days both birds seem equally at home on and about the th nest but the female does the larger part of the real work workS S 8 The young joung are hungry fellows as shown by experiments in which the birds were vero kept in captivity and keep the parent birds busy bringing food tood Often I have seen the old birds go to toa toa a considerable distance to find suitable feeding places and from such places to the nest back and forth they go In fre frequent frequent frequent quent trips Usually there is a good deal of hubbub when any food is la brought to the nest The Eastern Kingbird II The eastern kingbird is not near nearly nearly nearly ly as common in Utah as the one Just treated They are however quite com common common common mon in those localities where they they hey are areto areto areto to be found I have seen se them as far north as Box Elder county This is a dark dar bird dull black above white beneath with broad white band bandon on end of oC tail tall Like the Arkansas kingbird this one hasia hasta beautiful part partly partly partly ly concealed crest of red orange and white while This kingbird is somewhat more do domestic domestic domestic in its habits than is the fly flycatcher flycatcher catcher we have been considering He loves to come into the orchard near the house and to build in the apple trees And where a pair of oC kingbirds have taken up their abode near the abiding place of man birds of prey will give little if it any trouble in connection with the poultry for let a kingbird sight a marauder of oC this sort and he challenges chal challenges challenges lenges him to battle at once and so close together Is the defiance and the beginning of ot the battle that that they merge into one I said battle I did not quite mean that for the hawk hastens to get beyond the preserves of oC this doughty dought antagonist never once paus pausing pausing paus ing to accept the challenge or to argue the matter 4 The kingbird is practically erous though it takes a small per cent of wild fruits such as elderberries wild grapes etc but 90 per cent of oC all the food taken is of insects Other members of or this family that are more or less common and may be met with In various parts p of or the state are the flycatcher and the tho flycatcher The last named is rather the more common of the two He may ma be found near ranch buildings feeding in the characteristic flycatcher fashion and often repeating his rather pathetic call of The Swallows I Of much greater interest than the flycatchers fi are the members of the next family to be named the swallows swallows swallows lows For many reasons members of or this clan have always taken a strong hold upon the imagination and their early and regular disappearance from the scene of their summer activities has appealed to men in all times Even the tho th prophet Jeremiah makes use of this well known habit as an il illustration illustration Illustration of failure on the part of the chosen people and later the sudden disappearance led to a strange belief which was held not only by some of the early observers but also by one of recent times and one of the most distinguished of our ornithologists Coues Cones This was no less than the be belief belief lief lieC that these birds in place of mi migrating migrating migrating grating to a clime where both the food and the climate conditions were satis satisfactory satisfactory satisfactory factory they theas as Dr Johnson ex expressed expressed expressed pressed It It themselves together and settled Into hilo the tho mud of where they thoy hibernated for forthe forthe forthe the winter These interesting policemen of the theair theair theair air are well represented In our state representatives of the seven species s that are to be found in the United States are also to be found In Utah The Sand Martin Possibly the most common and the most numerous of the swallow tribe is the sand martin dr or sand swallow or bank swallow They are to be found Cound wherever the banks in which nests can be built are available for the pur purpose purpose purpose pose Along the of oC the roads where there have been goodly cuts for tor forthe forthe the purpose of ot making more easy tho the grade in brick yards where banks Janks have been left anywhere In fact where a tunnel can be driven into the earth to a sufficient depth These swallows do not nest In pairs but in colonies of from a dozen cou couples couples couples ples to hundreds of them and when the busy bus time arrives when the par parent parent parent ent birds have to work early and late lato to supply th tenants of the farther end of the burrow In the bank with food then a very busy scene is pre presented presented presented Out and In they flash and the doors to the nest being always open the birds do not have to stop for pre preliminaries preliminaries preliminaries but flash In with never a pause and out again after leaving their contribution within In July these and their young In common with certain other species of the swallow family gather on tele telegraph telegraph telegraph graph and telephone wires wireR by the thousands and they th continue to do this till arrangements are aN perfected for the trip to the faraway far away south Houth country The Cliff Swallow Another member of the swallow clan elan and next to the sand s martin marUn perhaps the most common In Utah is I Ithe ithe the eaves or cliff swallow These birds are fairly numerous In our state and like the bank swallow bring their young out from the nesting sites to find perches on telegraph wires The young thus ranged in long rows are in position to be fed to better advantage advantage advantage tage Farther east in the more thickly set sel settled settled tied portions of our country and where few cliffs are to be found t und these birds nest under the eaves of buildings In this state though the eaves are somewhat made use of for building purposes on account of the English sparrows which have pos possessed possessed possessed themselves s of every ever town these swallows more often build In the cliffs of the mountains and as a re ye result suit sult men are largely largel deprived of their valuable services as insect destroyers I have found colonies of ot eaves swallows swallows swallows lows nesting In the abrupt cliffs at Echo on the U P railway at Coal vilie on the face of ledges that look lookout lookout lookout out to the south among the sandstone cliffs i at ht t the farther end of Strawberry valley down on the Sevier river in Piute Plute county and in the cliffs over on the White river in Uintah county The nest of this bird is built of mud and is with the opening usually well toward the bottom The entrance to the nest is small and generally generall drawn out some somewhat somewhat somewhat what after the fashion of a bottle |