Show protection of birds necessary to cope with insects that destroy food timber has the economic value of ansec tiberous ti verous birds been overestimated over estimated one eminent entomologist has stated that a single pair of colorado beetles our common potato bug it if allowed to breed unmolested for one season would at the end of that period be responsible for a family running well over writes albert stoll jr in the detroit news the tussock and gypsy moth if unchecked would produce sufficient progeny within ten years to destroy the foliage of every tree in america over species of insects have been described and identified the number remaining unidentified is perhaps as great the voracity of these insect pests is beyond imagination edward howe forbush state entomologist of massachusetts has stated that certain of the insects will devour in the course of a day times their original weight in food this would be equivalent to the normal human being consuming pounds of beet beef or other meat in 24 hours caterpillars and other leaf eating insects have beau known to con consume as much as times their weight in food each day the only life beyond complete control of man is that of insects how destructive their reign could be if it were not for the insect eating birds no one could hazard an answer civilization through ignorance or viciousness has made tremendous inroads upon nour our bird life so muc much h so that certain destructive insect agents of nature have played havoc with our food and timber supply if we had held bird life a bit more sacred in the past the control of insects would not have been as great a problem as it is with us today the fecundity and voracity of insects if uncontrolled by man and his feathered allies would within a short period spell ruin devastation and misery to the human race you cannot overestimate the economic value of our insectivorous birds |