Food Habits of the Thrushes of the United States — John Shaqi
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
Lepidoptera (caterpillars) stand next to Coleoptera (beetles) in the
animal diet of the wood thrush. Although eaten with a fair degree of
regularity during every month of the bird's stay in the north, the
most were taken in July (16.32 per cent). The average for the season
is 9.42 per cent. Ants as an item of food are third in importance,
though if other Hymenoptera were included the order would rank next to
beetles. They seem to be a rather favorite food with all birds of the
genus _Hylocichla_. With the wood thrush they begin with 18.12 per
cent in April and gradually decrease through the summer and disappear
in October. The total for the season is 8.89 per cent. Hymenoptera
other than ants were eaten with great regularity (3.86 per cent)
throughout the season, but not in large quantities. Diptera (flies)
are eaten in small quantities and rather irregularly. Most of them
were the long-legged crane flies (Tipulidæ), both in the adult and
larval form. The total for the season is 2.70 per cent. Hemiptera
(bugs) do not appear to be a favorite food, though a few were taken in
all of the seven months except October. The average for the season is
only 1.33 per cent. Orthoptera (grasshoppers) are eaten in small
quantities until July, after which they form a fair percentage till
September. The total consumption amounts to 2.28 per cent of the food.
A few other insects make up a fraction of 1 per cent. Spiders and
myriapods (thousand-legs) appear to be a favorite food with the wood
thrush, constituting in April 20.94 per cent of the food, but
gradually decreasing in quantity until September. The aggregate for
the year is 8.49 per cent. A few sowbugs (isopods), snails, and
earthworms (1.83 per cent) close the account of animal food.
Following is a list of the insects identified in the stomachs of the
wood thrush and the number of stomachs in which each was found:
HYMENOPTERA.
_Tiphia inornata_ 1
COLEOPTERA.
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