OCR Text |
Show Need of Conserving the I Wild Bird Life I By MRS. J. P. MacCULLOCH, Joliet, 111. It seems to be a deplorable deplor-able fact that the people in general do not realize the very great necessity of conserving con-serving the wild bird life of both city and country. In the city the birds will work to repay amply the small care necessary by destroying the innumerable innumer-able and in many cases invisible eggs and cocoons. In the country they will do the same work on the trees and fruit bushes in early spring and in the fall, when it is remembered that the trees and bushes are laden to a large extent with embryo insect life that is almost certain to develop its full destructive power by early spring. There is great monetary value in the work done by the wild birds. The cotton growers of Texas lose every year more than forty million dollars by the boll weevil. The wheat growers lose $100,000,000 a year by the chinch bug. The farmers of the eastern states pay $15,000,000 a year for material to kill the potato bug. The apple-producing states pay from $1,000,000 to $3,000,000 a year for spraying trees to keep down the codling moth. Truck raisers lose yearly $50,000,000 by insects. Shade trees everywhere and the forests are being destroyed by insect pesta. Why this great loss ? Ninety per cent of the bird life of this country coun-try has been destroyed. Birds, and birds only, are able to keep in check the ravages of insects. While most of the readers of this letter may not be interested in the boll weevil and the chinch bug, a great many are or should be interested in the potato bug, the rose beetle and the many common insects that infest home flower and vegetable gardens. Wild birds with very little encouragement encour-agement will keep these pests down to a large extent. Getting away altogether from the commercial side of the question, there is a great deal of genuine pleasure in having the friendship of the birds, in having them call in your yard several times a day. Put out a feeding tray on' a post and two suet baskets and watch your feathered friends enjoy the "handout." Of courseThe sparrows will try to consume the feed, but they can be chased two or three times a day when the wild birds are not around, and it has been my experience that the sparrows are more easily frightened than the wild birds. . I have quite a large feeding house in the yard, where it can be easily observed from my living room window, and two .suet baskets on trees near by. These luxuries have induced steady visits from bluejays, juncos, chickadees (black cap), downy woodpeckers, titmouse and, best of all, a pair of cardinals. The white-breasted nuthatch also is among the visitors. I have not as yet been able to get the cardinals to come in the yard, but they come very near and eat the wheat that is put out every day. I trust that they will soon get as friendly as the rest of the birds. |