For Young Observers
Two Notes by a Young Observer
EDMUND B. DIBBLE. St. Paul, Minn, (aged 13)
A Word about Bluejays.—One morning when out on the lawn I saw a Bluejay fly quietly into a tree, look around, then hop up near a Robin's nest. He looked around again, then hopped up to the rim and leaned over as if to take out an egg, but a Robin which hap- pened to fly up to the nest just then saw him and, redoubling its speed, flew against the Bluejay's neck and (whether to try to hold it- self up or pull the Bluejay down I do not know) held on. Both tumbled to the ground, and for a moment the Bluejay 'didn't know what struck him.' Then the other Robin came and began pecking at the Jay's eyes, whereupon Robin No. i let go and began pecking too. The Jay seemed to think things were getting too warm for him and started for the woods near by, where I could hear the cries of both him and the Robins who had followed him. Last year a Bluejay robbed a Sparrow's nest just outside my window. I awoke one morning to hear a great outcry among the English Sparrows and, going to the window, saw a Jay just gulping down something. Then he leaned over and lifted a young bird up, but I tapped on the window and he dropped the bird and flew away. When I looked in the nest one bird was missing.
The Feeding of Young Honied Larks. — One afternoon (May ii), desiring to know how many times the Horned Larks brought food to their young, I posted myself where I could watch them. Although I was too far away to distinguish what they gave the young, I could see the little fellows open their yellow mouths to receive the food. I started my watching at just four o'clock, and below are the times at which the birds brought the food for about one hour: 4.01, 4.01½, 4.06, 4.10, 4.11½, 4.14, 4.20, 4.24, 4.2914, 4.31, 4.37½, 4.39½, 4.41, 4.46, 4.50, 4.52, 4.55½, 4-58, 5.00, 5.02. It will be seen that this made twenty times in about one hour or, on an average, every three minutes.
At the first glance this may seem extraordinary, but as there were four young ones, each would be fed only once every twelve minutes. But think of the number of insects destroyed in a season. The parents work from twelve to sixteen hours a day, and raise three or four broods of four or five birds each in a season. Just think how soon the insects would become unbearable if it were not for our feathered friends ! Man alone could do almost nothing against them.
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