. The book of birds : common birds of town and country and American game birds . ore hunters in the UnitedStates than any other game bird. It is no lessappreciated on the table than in the field, andin many States has unquestionably been huntedtoo closely. Fortunately it seems to be practi-cable to propagate the bird in captivity, andmuch is to be hoped for in this direction. Halfthe food of this quail consists of weed seeds,almost a fourth of grain, and about a tenth ofwild fruits. Although thus eating grain, thebird gets most of it from stubble. Fifteen percent of the bobwhites food is compo
. The book of birds : common birds of town and country and American game birds . ore hunters in the UnitedStates than any other game bird. It is no lessappreciated on the table than in the field, andin many States has unquestionably been huntedtoo closely. Fortunately it seems to be practi-cable to propagate the bird in captivity, andmuch is to be hoped for in this direction. Halfthe food of this quail consists of weed seeds,almost a fourth of grain, and about a tenth ofwild fruits. Although thus eating grain, thebird gets most of it from stubble. Fifteen percent of the bobwhites food is composed of in-sects, including several of the most seriouspests of agriculture. It feeds freely uponColorado potato beetles and chinch bugs; itdevours also cucumber beetles, wireworms,billbugs, clover-leaf weevils, cotton-boll wee-vils, army worms, bollworms, cutworms, andRocky Mountain locusts. Bobwhite is veryuseful to the farmer, and while it may not benecessary to remove it from the list of gamebirds every farmer should see that his ownfarm is not depleted by eager Photograph by John Woodcock A RUIPED GROUSE ABOUT TO DRUM Of all the characteristics of this superb game bird, its habit of drumming is perhapsthe most remarkaljle. This loud tattoo begins with the measured thump of the big drum,then gradually changes and dies away in the rumble of the kettle-drum. It may be brieflyrepresented thus: Thuiii/—thumf—fhuin/—thumj. thtiinl^; timing, thuinp-rup rup nip nif^ The sound is produced by the male bird beating the air with his wings ashe stands firmly braced on some favorite low perch ; and it is now quite well known to bethe call of the male to the female—an announcement that he is at the old rendezvous. 55
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Photo credit: © Reading Room 2020 / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
Keywords: ., bookcentury1900, bookdecade1920, booksubjectbirds, bookyear1921
