THE SMALL BIRD NUISANCE.

New Zealand Times, Volume LXXII, Issue 4734, 16 August 1902, Page 8 (Supplement)

THE SMALL BIRD NUISANCE.

THK BIRD AS THK KABOTUKU OF MAN. (Address given h-fur-; the Wellington J’hi loaiphieal Society by tin: ITesidcnt, Me \V. 'l’. L. 'I ravers.) After von had done nie the honour of (decline; me to the position of President, of this Society for tin; current yejir, i resolved to deal, in my opening addre-s. v.i'h 'he struct my and action of the ei vser-, which form --o alt ractive a feiitnreVf the tract rf country el retell-iii-i Toknanu lf> Whit** Is.and. hieluding the !tr,lorna di-triet. and tnudenlallv with -mil ' of Ih- remarkabl" feat mo'- uhiel i liuv- charnel erised the recent voleattic outbursts in Martinique a id hi. Vincent , and tn again call ynnr attention tn Ih- l-rime lives of all such phemmnma. It may be r , nnllect-d by >n,n • of y; u I hat f brought this side

■eel, in fore I,nr aneiciy in papers rote, durine (lie se.v.Jn'iv i f IS/7 and IH7«. blit Ihe Views- wham I -me lured in Mibinii vrer • not 1 avenrahiy received I,y s i:c1 1 rf nnr menthi Vs a- chdincd ■ " posse-any large degree of gvcilugtea! hnouh ilr-s chiefly on lie- ttrmmd that Sir ( haries L\all had always t resit ed such questions as mil being. properly, within tin- ranee id geological eii(|uiry. Tl was, i heref.ire. with no litlle grati(icnlion I hat f read the address delivered hy Professor Soelas to the Oeoloideal Seel ion of the British Association in li.'Ori. iu which Ite propounded precisely similar views. and pointed cut that, at I he present. day. geologists are no lunger justified in a--W',;ng (hut cosmogony i- alien In geology. SMALL BIRD NUISANCE..

Tint a question, the proper solution of which is certainly of far greater importance to this colony, has recently arisen, and has induc'd me to deal uith a, different and more useful practical subject, namely, whether the attempt now being made to obtain legislative authority to exterminate our small bird' is’justifiable or not V The title which I have given to this address is taken from a work on ornithology written hv Michele! , the great I' reueh historian, who added to (he distinction which Ite attained in that character that of an eminent practical writer on natural history. Those who have had the advantage of rending hi.s work will have seen time it was !,pi cially intended to demonstrate the enormous advar'ages whioh man derives. both d : reedy and indirectly, from tho labours i,t bird, and to impress upon him the fact that the wanton dei .notion of these beautiful and iiseltd creatures |s not only grossly cruel, bat is surely followed hy disaster to tlie destroyer; and ;t is my object, in tins address, tn show that if the proposed legislation be adopted ;,nd effectively carried out. i>. will certainly inflict dis-

aster, nol: only upon those through j whose ignore nee mid prejudices it b be- I ing promoted bur practically upon (lie whole population of I lie colony, and I . can not hut think Unit if such a result, be- even possible, it v,:i.s incumbent upon tJiosc who lire prriniottnu; it to have nuule careful enquiries into tile grounds of objection raised against the birds before 'proceeding to tlie length now (ontempb’Ud. In order, however, to deni fairly with tbe questions at issue, it was necessary that I .should first; ascertain whether the proposed, legislation is directed against small birds generally or nuainst some special bird or birds, and if the latter. I ben to enquire into the nature of tbe offences of which (bey or it are accused. THK SINS OF THE SFAHKOW. I have taken some pains to obtain n reply to these questions, and the common answer to Ihe first by those wiio support’the proposed legislation is “Tile sparrow.” When asked what are the special offences for which the sparrow deserves the condign punislimeut intended for him, the reply is. “We are told by the farmer and the fruit-grower that ho does the most serious injury to their crops, without affording any compensation whatsoever for so doing”; and they add that ‘‘Not only in Now Zealand, but in other countries, lie in looked upon by the farmer and tlie fruit-grower as an impudent thief, without a redeeming feature in his character.” Certain other birds, and especially the blackbird and green linnet, are also looked upon as injurious, but for downright wickedness, not one of them is a patch upon the sparrow. Now, assuming that the extermination of Hie sparrow is really the principal object aimed at by the intended legislation, I propose to point out generally, first, the nature and extent of the injuries 'done to our animal and vegetable productions by insects, and, second, the uses of insectivorous birds, and particularly the sparrow, in •mitigating such injuries in this country. This subject is not new to mo. Many years ago. whilst I was a member of hho Houso of .kepresentatives, similar charges were made against the sparrow, and my reply was ns follows:—“War is to be waged against the sparrows under tho authority of Parliament. The following utterances show the wisdom brought to bear in discussing the question. The Hon. Mr Chamberlain says that the hawk is the natural enemy of tho sparrow, a deduction, no doubt, from tho name ‘sparrow-hawk’ applied to one species of hawk in this country; bnt no Now Zealand hawk that I know of ever pursues a sparrow. Mr Oliver tells us that, it was a mistake to. introduce tho sparrow, and so does Mr Grey. Mr Miller says that none but the agriculturist was fit to discuss the question, and tlrow a comparison between tho sparrow and (bo starling, which was about as appropriate as if lie had attempted to compare the sparrow with the elephant. Mr Acland said tbo sparrow did not destroy insects. Mr Holmes read some extracts in support of his opinions against tho sparrow, and I could supply him with any quantity more of tbe same kind, emanating from equal ignorance of the subject. Ik would be well if bon. gentelmen, in dealing with this question, would take tho trouble to read tbo evidence given before a committee of tbe House of Lords on flic subject of sparrow clubs in England, and if they should still entertain any respect for the intolli-

goncc of that august body, they would probably bo dispon'd to change the i opinions above expressed. Not many years ago (he agriculturists of Hungary succeeded in getting the sparrow proscribed by law. and he disappeared from thu laud. Within five years from that time the Government were com-

pelled to spend 230.000 rix dollars in rc-introdncing him from other countries. In the North Island, and in the northern parts of the South Island, the cultivation of valuable deciduous trees was practically impossible until the large cicada had been greatly reduced in numbers, and if Mr Acland bad seen, as l and many others have, the sparrow actively engaged in destroying these creatures and devouring them, he mij'ht probably change his opinion. The nestling sparrow cannot cat hard food, and careful observation has shown that- a pair of parent sparrows will bring upwards of 3000 insects to the nest in the,

course of a single day to feed its brood.” I notice that the same nonsense ns still uttered upon the subject whilst not a tilth' of evidence is aodneed in support of it.

THK LABOKKKII OF MAN. Now. in order that we may fully understand the assistance which the bird can afford to man iu the prosecution of the incessant, war in which b” it undoubtedly engaged against injuri-on.-i insects,, it. is necessary that we shot. Id know mill appreciate t.'ie sti-eng; h am! n-ourees of Ihe enemy he has In meet. To tins end I purpose to call attention to the number and e.alnre of the hosts which are always threatening the lirudnce of our cultivations. \s you

are aware, all trim insect - are comparative! v small animals. belonging to the art ienhite sub-kingdom having the borl.v dividei! into three portions. From whic'i fact (he title i isec'.a lias ■been applied to (hem. Tlmy ; ,re. in general. covered v.ith a cornu - 'ons or horny iniegunmnl,, sirring a- an external skeleton. Thev'are capable for tlie most pari, of flight, having either two or four wines, and they usually undergo three transf rtnat ions iron. egg to maturity. These characters may not always he evident, vet in no instance ere they decidmlly and truly absent. Departures in degree from a ' given type and modifications in tiie iietail of structure are met. with in every eia-s of animal life, but the essentials upon which the, claim of specie-; is i.i tiny ease founded, remain—subject to the law of ovolution —practically inviolate. As in the case of the hat with its structure far flight, .and of the whale with its oceanic habits, these apparently abnormal habits do not remove thorn from among the mamnntiia.

It has been said by a great entomologist that insects arc

NAT I'll K’S FAVOniITK PROD IX’TIONS,

in which, in order to manifest her skill and power, she has combined all that is cither beautiful and graceful, interesting and alluring, or curious and singular, in every other class of her children. To these, her valued miniature:-, she has given tho most delicate touch and highest finish of her pencil ; nor has she been lavish only in ornamenting these privileged tribes. In oilier respects she has been equally unsparing of. ber favours. To some sfic lias given herns nearly tho counterparts of those of various quadrupeds; some are covered with bristles, others with spines; some are of the richest hues, sparkling like the ruby, the topaz, the sapphire”, and the amethyst in the rays of the sun, some gleam in polished armour—

“Like some stern warrior formidably bright. Their steelv sides reflect a gloaming light”:'

others are dull of colour, and of strange form and aspect : some resemble withered leaves or bits of stick, and find security in tbe resemblance. To leap, to run, to bore '■ into tho ground or drive galleries through timber, to fly through (he air, to gambol in tbo water and dive and swim are among tbo endowments of insects. Some build structures more wonderful than tbo pyramids, some gleam with phosphorescent radiance, and many are armed with poisonous weapons. They furnish ns with silk, wax, honey, lac, cochineal and the gall-nut. Some bold an important place, in tbo pharmacopoeia, some are eaten by various tribes of men. and multitudes furnish food to the beasts of tbo earth and to tbe birds of the air, to tho reptile tribes, to too fishes, and to the more powerful of their own class.

For the purposes of tiiis paper, however. it is only necessary to divide I fie whole class into those which arc and Pho-e which are not injurious to man. rnfnrtnnatcly, the creator number falls under the first of "these distinctions, and accordingly, we find that Kirby and Spence, in their charming “Introduction to Entomology,” devote no less than five entire epistles to the injuries we sustain from insects, whilst two only arc sufficient to describe the, benefits they yield. The former contain an appalling array; the injuries done to us in onr held crops, in our gardens, in our orchards, in onr woods and forests, not to mention those which attack onr live stock or onr persons, arc indeed well calculated to impress ns with the truth of the Oriental proverb that “The smallest enemy is not to bo despised.’’ In relation to the numbers of insects alike in tropical and sub-Arctic areas, I venture to make the following quotations. Michelet, speaking of tropical insects, says:— “In these climates the insect is the greatest curse. Insects everywhere and in everything; they possess an infinity of means for attacking us: they walk, swim, glide, fly; they are in the air, and yon breathe them. Invisible, they make known their nrcsoneo by the most painful wounds. The hardiest of men, tho buccaneers and filibusters of old who carried on their nefarious doings chiefly within tropical areas, declared that of all dangers and of all pains, they dreaded most the wounds of insects. Frequently intangible, and even invisible, they are destruction under an unavoidable form. How shall wo oppose them when they make war upon us in legions? Their means of olVoncc, too, are varied and terrible. No chirnrgical implement invented by modern art can be compared with tho monstrous armour of tropical insects; their pincers, their nippers, their teeth, their saws, their horns, their augurs, all tho tools of combat and dissection, with which they conic armed to the battle, and with which they labour, pierce, cut, rend, and finely partition with skill and dexterity, arc only equalled by their furious ravonou.sncss. In those lands of fire, whore the rapidity of decomposition renders every corpse dangerous, where death threatens life, these terrible accelerators of the disappearance of animal bodies multiply ad infinitum. A corpse scarcely touches tho earth before it is seized,' attacked, disorganised, dissected. Onlv tho bones arc left. They are active hunters and insatiable gluttons. Compared with them, the tiger, the lion and the vulture arc mild, sober, moderate creatures ; for what is any of these in tho presence of an insect width, in four and twenty hours, consumes thrice its own weight.'” In temperate regions, too, the war of the insect against man is equally desperate and continuous. Not many years ago tho public papers in Europe were occupied with articles expressing the most gloomy fears for the noble oak and pine forests of Germany. It was stated that millions of trees had already fallen under the insidious attacks of a minute beetle, which laid its eggs in the bark, whence the hirvao penetrated between the bark and the wood, destroying the vital connection between those parts, interrupting the course of the sap. and inducing rapid decay and speedy death. In the north of Franco, the public promenades were almost, everywhere shaded hy avenues of noble elms. In very many cases these trees were fast

disappearin'; before the assaults of a similar foe; ami the grand odd elms or the London parks were becoming so t hiinu d that, great alarm was felt, and the resources of science employed for checking Urn mischief, t* jfly thousand tries. Chiefly oaks, were similarly de.--troyed in the Bois dc Vincennes, near Paris. In all these cases tho minute hut. mighty agent was seine species or other of beetle of the genus Scalyt ns. In STeia and the Banal, a minute flf occurs from whose destructive assaults on cattle the inhabitants periodically snlfer innncr.se loss. A traveller, arriving at Goliihacs. on the Danube, thus speaks cf ii : ‘‘Near this place we fiu ml a range of caverns, famous) for producing (he poisonous fly, too well known in Serein and Hungary under (he name of the Gnlubascer fly. Tiiese singular and venomous insects, sorae-

hat resembling mosfinitoes, generally make thmr appearance dfiring the first great, beat of the summer, iu such numbers a.s to app; ar like vast volumes of smoke. Their attacks are always directed agaiti'i. every description of ((tuidruped. and so potent is the. poison they communicate that even an ox is unable to withstand its influence, for he always expires in less than two hours. Thin results, not so much from the virulence of the poison as that every vulnerable part is simultaneously covered with thrse most destructive insects; when the wretched animals, frenzied with pain, rush wild through the fhdds till death puts a period to their sufferings, or they accelerate dissolution by plunging headlong into a river.” Perhaps worse, however, than those or any of t hem are mosquitos, which regardless alike of Tropical heat and Arctic cold, swarm in countless millions under both conditions, not that their virulence or fatality equals that of the tsetse cf •South Africa or the zimb of Abyssinia, hut because they are most universally distributed. Those, terrible as they are, arc limited to certain districts, but 11io mosquito is übiquitous, and is everywhere a pest and torment. One needs to spend a night among mosquitos to understand what a true plague of flies is. Hundreds of travellers might bo cited on the subject, and if .1 adduce tlie following testimony it is not because it is the strongest I could find, but because it is one of the most recent, and then faro least known Mr Atkinson, who has laid open to us the most magnificent scenery of tlie world, and the most inaccessible, to whom neither fearful chasms and precipices, nor boiling torrents, nor swift rivers, nor earthquakes and furious storms, nor eternal frost and snow, nor burning waterless steppes, nor robbers nor wild b:»sts. presented any impediment, fairly confesses bis conqueror iu the mosquito. The gnat alone, of all creatures, elicits from him a word of dread; he could not brave the mosquitos. Over and over be tells us in bis accounts cf his mountain scrambles that the mosquitos were there “in millions,” that they were “taking a most savage revenge on him for having sent Ids horses out of their reach,” that they were “devouring him.’ that he “neither dared to sleep nor to look out,” that “tho humming sound of the millions was somet h iuv awful.” that ho found himself “in the very regions of ( torment, which it was utterly

impossible to endure,” that “the poor horses stood with. t heir beads in the smoke, as a protection against the pests,” and that “to have remained on the spot would have subjected them to a degree of torment neither man nor beast could endure, so that they were obliged to retreat.” “I wish I could say,” bo feelingly adds, “that we left the enemy in possession of the field. Not so; they pursued us with bloodthirsty pertinacity, until we reached some open meadows, when they were driven into their, fenny region by a breeze, I hope to prey on each other.”

INSECT RAVAGES IN NEW ZEALAND.

Leaving these generalities, I will now deal shortly with the subject in its application to onr own islands. I arrived here in 1841), and first settled in Kelson. Tho area'of land then under cultivation was small, but even at that early date most of the grains and vegetables and many of the fruits common in England and Franco were successfully cultivated.' All, however, were subject to the attacks of injurious insects of various species, some imported ami some indigenous. The large native locust, cf which it is difficult at present to obtain a. specimen, was then very common and very injurious, whilst grasshoppers existed in countless numbers. But the chief injury was done by various'forms of Colebptera and. Lcpidotera, both foreign and indigenous. Wheat always escaped better than oats or barley, the latter especially yielding only a very casual crop. 'Tho frint trees, vines, currant, raspberry and gooseberry bushes bore welt, and apples of many kinds, plums, peaches and apricots were particularly abundant and well flavoured. Hops, which have iilways been a specialty in Kelson, also yielded largo and well-flavoured crops, and were not molested by the fly, but in tho ten years during which I remained there an appreciable increase took place in the injuries caused by insects, and although the generally dry character of the climate,, especially during the summer season, was unfavourable to the development of many injurious, forms, the number both of species and individuals had increased very greatly. In 1860 i went to reside in Canterbury, which had then been settled for between eight arid nine years. Its progress had been more rapid than that of either Wellington or Kelson, because its settlers had been able to obtain from both of these every form of vegetable and fruit which was suitable for cultivation within its borders. To tho northward of Christchurch, around Kaiapoi and Bangiora, in tho Lincoln district, and in tho immediate surroundings of Christchurch, largo areas had been brought under cultivation. and yielded excellent returns ; but I well remember the extraordinary eionds of moths of all kinds which rose from the ground as one walked cither through tho tussock-covered areas ■ or through fields ■ of cultivated grass.. In the Kangipra district trenches wore often dug to intercept millions of caterpillars when inarching towards growing crops, and the ravages they committed where no means «.f protection existed were very serious. 1 left Canterbury in 1807,. and have ever since resided in Wellington. By that time the numbers of destructive insects iii Canterbury- had been greatly .diminished'by the constant burning of the tmscck grasses, besides which the sparrow had been introduced and had been doing his work, and I noticed that the yield of all grain crops had increased in proportion to the increase and spread of this'most valuable ally of man. As regards Wellington, my observations have been practically restricted to the district of tho Hurt. When I first became acquainted with- it, the large and beautiful Cicada C. existed there in immense numbers. This insect' is especially destructive to fruit and other trees. It deposits its eggs in lines cut somewhat, deeply upon the principal branches, and the wound Mins made is never healed. Two or three years after

the wound has thus been made, tlie wounded branch is sure to break at tlie wounded part, and the symmetry of the tree i lierebv seriously affected and its growth checked. This insect is still procurable, but it found a determined and constant enemy in the sparrow, which has already made, it. scarce. Tho telegraph poles were much frequented by them, raid the noise they made when in great numbers was? actually deafening. As regards our ordinary cultivated plants, the'agriculturist, the frait-growor and the gardener are at one in their complaints of the ravages committed bv various forms of “insect nests,” and the language used by Hr Vreneb in Ids “Handbook of tlie destructive Insects of Victoria” is equally applicable to those found in this cop- v "J'hcro* as hoi’c* one of tho piincipa* troubles which persons engaged in the cultivation of tlie soil have to contend aeaiust is tlie existence of innumerable pests, and he points out that tlie time has arrived wuen. if the people of tliateolouy are to fight successfully against them, united action and constant vigu|;;nee would hare to be exercised, ami be especially urges -that knowledge must be gained hy regular and unprejudiced observation and by carefully conducted experiments. THK NATURE.

As a principal means of ensuring the desired result. he emphasises the necessilv for preserving insect-destroying birds. He points out that to all who arti engaged in either farming or fruitgrowing, the preservation of (heir useful friends, the insect-destroying birds, is of the very greatest, importance. “Nature,” he says, •'maintains a balance between the numbers of the. birds, beasts', insects, plants, etc., in any district. "•If by artificial means wo destroy this balance, immediately intolerable numbers of some kind remain with us, and wo have to expend much money and labour to rid ourselves of the swarms which Nature was ready to dispose of for us without charge.” Quoting from Mr Tyron’s valuable work on the fungus and insect pests of Queensland. where, as you know, the cattle tick often does enormous mischief, he adds “that if the arrangements of nature were left undisturbed, the result would be a wholesome equilibrium of destruction. The birds would kill so many insects tliat the insects could not kill too many plants. One class is a match for the other. A certain insect was found to lay 2000 eggs, but a single ‘tom-tit’ was found to devour 200,000 eggs in a year. A swallow devours 543 insects in a day, eggs and all. This is the whole case in«a nutshell; the birds will do yeoman service and ask for no wages.” He then adds: “How and by what means is the wholesale destruction cf the insectivorous birds of Victoria to be checked? This would seem to bo a somewhat difficult question to answer, for have we not already game laws, but are they carried out? To secure active co-operation in the direction of the preservation of insectivorous birds, we must bo able to show those interested the difference between the noxious and the beneficial: to point out to those who are engaged in our great rural industries that their interest lies in uniting to maintain the balance which Nature Ha? given us, and more ‘ especially to endeavour . to impress upon the young people the necessity for preserving, certain- birds from destruction. Those unaccustomed to dissecting birds can hr,vo but a faint idea of tnc enormous quantity of insects which many oven of the smaller birds devour, and a better acquaintance with both birds ami insects would, I am sm-oi tend to prevent the wholesale slaughter of creatures so useful.”

Lat us now enquire wlv.it available force we have in this colony upon which reliance can be placed for resisting the ever-increasing army of insect enemies which threatens our field and garden crops, our orchards and fruit plantations, and our flower beds? Apart from insect-destroying insects, such as the ichneumons, the dragon flies and others of the like proclivities, wo . have only a few insect-eating birds, of which some arc indigenous and, others aro . imported. Tlio indigenous birds are rarely found outside the native bush, and are now very few in number. In my garden there are two or three pairs of fautails, which aro always diligent in the pursuit of food. The seagulls' ito much to lessen the number of destructive larvae by following .the■ plough in. tho extensive cultivations along-the seaboard of the South. Island. Of the imported birds, the white-eye zorcrops, the blackbird anjd the thrush feed upon animal food throughout tho winter, but will certainly: unless prevented, take any opportunity presented to them of attacking fruit in its season. The thrushes 'have kept niy garden free from" the snail, which does mischief to the young forms of certain classes of plants, but both these, birds confine, themselves-to tho;neighbourhood-of plantations., The starling ranges the pastures, but does not, so" far as my reservation has gone, take any part in clearing the crops of grain, corn and pulse of the insects which attack them. ,Wo arc reduced, then, to the sparrow, including the recently introduced hedge-sparrow, a most valuable x bird, which alone are left to protect us from the horde of insects that attack everything we grow. I keep a brigade of. them, to which I give a certain .amount of daily food, not sufficient,, however, to "diminish their diligence in the search for insects. I..see the work they do in this respect. T see them, during the breeding season, each day carrying hundreds of insects to their young, which - could not live on any other form of food.. I sco my garden crops kept fairly free froin injurious insects by their means and theirs only, and I do not grudge them tho modicum of fruit which they take in its season. I sec how' difficult it is to raise fruit in this country owing to the absence of the ordinary natural checks upon' the iucroasn of the insects which prey,upon it. Nature, we know, delights in preserving a due balance between tho various forms of life, whether animal or vegetable, but man, in his ignorance and wilfulnoss. is constantly interfering with natural operations, often falsely attributing the evil which results, to anything but his own shortsightedness and folly. Hence the proposed legislation;"

I will now conclude tills address by quoting a passage from Michelet’s work, which will show you that.ignorance and selfishness ,'nro not new characteristics of the farmer. “The miserly agriculturist.” ho says, “is the accurate and forcible expression of Virgil. Miserly and blind in truth, for he proscribes the birds which destroy insects and protect his crops. Not a grain will be spare to the bird which, during the winter hunts up the future insect, socking out the nest of the larvae, and daily destroying- myriads of .future depredators, but. s,ncks of corn to f the adult insect and whole fields to the grasshoppers which the bird would have combated ! With his eyes ■ fixed on the sparrow, on the present moment, without foresight. deaf to the grand harmony which no one ever interrupts with impunity, ho has everywhere solicited or approved of laws for suppressing the much-needed assistance of his labour, the insect-destroying bird. And the insects have Avenged the bird, as we have seen it become necessary in many

cases to recall in all baste tuc banisacd. In the Island of Bourbon, for example, a price was set on each martin’s head. They disappeared, and the grasshoppers took possession of the island, dot curing, extinguishing, burning np with harsh acriditv all that they did not. devour. The sumo thing occurred in North .America will* the starling, the protector of the maize. The srairroiv even, which attacks too grain, hut also defends it—tiic thieving, pilfering sparrow, loaded with so many insults and stricken with so many maledictions —it has been seen that without his aid Hungary would have perished, that he alone could wage the mighty war against tno cockchafers and tho myriad winged fws which romned in the low-lying lands. His banishment was revoked, and this courageous militia, hastily _ recalled, which though not strictly disciplined, become none the loss the salvation of the country.”