Food Habits of the Thrushes of the United StatesBeal, F. E. L. (Foster Ellenborough Lascelles)
Science
Food Habits of the Thrushes of the United States
Beal, F. E. L. (Foster Ellenborough Lascelles)
Birds; Thrushes -- Food
The gray-cheeked thrush (_H. a. aliciæ_) is found in migration over
all the Eastern States, but breeds farther north, beyond our limits.
Bicknell's thrush (_H. a. bicknelli_), a closely related form, while
having somewhat the same general range, breeds farther south and nests
in the mountains of northern New York and New England. Both subspecies
have the same general habits as other forms of the genus so far as
haunts and choice of residence are concerned, but their far-northern
range excludes them from coming into contact with cultivated crops.
The species does not seem to be very abundant anywhere, and
consequently only a few stomachs have been received for examination.
In all they number but 111 and are very irregularly distributed in
time. None were taken in August and only one in July and two in June.
From so scanty and unevenly distributed material it is impossible to
draw final conclusions, but we can get some idea as to the nature of
the bird's food and its economic importance.
The first analysis of the food gives 74.86 per cent of animal matter
to 25.14 per cent of vegetable. This is the most animal food found in
the stomachs of any bird of the genus _Hylocichla_ and the largest but
two of any of the thrushes.
_Animal food._--Beetles collectively amount to about one-third of all
the food (33.32 per cent). Of these, 2.83 per cent are the useful
Carabidæ. The rest belong to harmful families, such as the Scarabæidæ,
Elateridæ, and the weevils, or snout beetles. Ants amount to 16.34 per
cent and are eaten very regularly--the most in the early part of the
season. Hymenoptera other than ants, as wasps and bees, were eaten to
the extent of 5.60 per cent, and with the ants make 21.94 per cent,
placing this food next in rank to beetles. As in the case of ants,
most of the bees and wasps were eaten in the first three months of the
season. No honey bees were found. Lepidoptera (caterpillars) were
third in order of abundance (8.81 per cent). No special pest was
discovered, but all caterpillars may be considered as harmful. A few
grasshoppers were found in the stomachs taken in April and May, and
more in those collected in September and October. They do not appear
to be a favorite food and amount to only 1.72 per cent. Other insects,
as flies, bugs, and a few others, collectively amount to 2.89 per
cent. Among these, it is of interest to note in one stomach the
remains of the famous seventeen-year locust (_Tibicen septemdecem_),
rather large game for so small a bird. Spiders are freely eaten by the
gray-cheeked thrush in spring, and sparingly in fall. For the season
they constitute 5.77 per cent of the food. A few other animals, as
crawfish, sowbugs, and angleworms (0.41 per cent), complete the animal
food.
Following is a list of the insects identified and the number of
stomachs in which found:
HYMENOPTERA.
_Lophyrus_ sp 1
_Aphænogaster tennesseense_ 1
COLEOPTERA.
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