Good Done by Birds

Good done by birds. These studies of the food of birds show that they help man in three ways: (1) by eating injurious insects; (2) by eating weed seeds; and (8) by eating mice and other rodents. Another way of minor importance in which the birds are use­ful is in acting as scavengers.

Harm done by insects. Among insects are found some of man's most common foes. In almost every walk of life, man has to contend with insects. The mosquito and fly carry diseases and thus cause thousands of cases of sickness and death every year.

The gardener, the fruit-grower, and the farmer are constantly fighting the insects that prey upon their crops. In the vegetable garden, the cabbage-worm attacks the cabbage; the cucumber-beetle, the vine crops; the potato-beetle, the potatoes. In the fruit­garden, the codling moth damages the apple; the currant-worm, the currant; the white grub, the strawberry. On the farm the army-worm destroys the wheat, and the root-aphis attacks the corn.

The elm-beetle and tussock-moth attack shade-trees, and the forest tent-caterpillar destroys forest-trees. Nearly all crops have a great variety of different kinds of insects that may prey upon them. One hundred and seventy-six kinds have been found preying on the apple tree alone and four hundred kinds on the oak.

The following table prepared by the United States Bureau of Entomology gives an estimate of the annual loss caused by insects in the United States: ­

Besides the tremendous loss caused directly by the insects in destroying the crops, man spends an­nually millions of dollars for spraying outfits and other means of controlling these pests. H to this be added the loss in sickness and death caused by mosquitoes and flies, the total annual toll that in­sects collect from man in the United States is about one billion dollars.

Yahoo! News Search Results for birds insects
Yahoo! News Search Results for birds insects

Make your landscape inviting to birds
If you can provide a place for birds to nest, you'll have the pleasure of seeing them frequently at close range and have the advantage of allies in the control of insects.
Best bug control? Invite birds into your yard
Growers are beginning to understand that common birds can be of uncommon value to fields, lawns and gardens. Many avian species earn their keep by eating insects and small mammals and destroying weed seeds.
Kaunas Zoo ? a joy for kids
Some 2,900 insects, fish, amphibians, reptiles, birds and mammals live in the Lithuanian Zoo situated on 15.9 hectares in an oak grove of the Zaliakalnis district in the town of Kaunas. The 85 species of mammals are the biggest attraction at the zoo.
A Model System For Group Behavior Of Nanomachines
Probing for principles underlying flock patternsFor the casual observer it is fascinating to watch the orderly and seemingly choreographed motion of hundreds or even thousands of fish, birds or insects. However, the formation and the manifold motion patterns of such flocks raise numerous questions fundamental to the understanding of complex systems. A team of physicists from Technische ...
Panel to study tower effect on birds & bees
New Delhi, Sept. 1: The environment and forests ministry has set up a panel of experts to assess the possible impact of mobile phone towers on birds and bees amid indications from studies that electromagnetic radiation from towers may be affecting their populations.
Sora: Secretive birds more frequently heard than seen
Species: Sora
Mobile towers come under Environment Ministry scanner
New Delhi, Sep 2 : The government has launched a study to find out impact of mobile phone towers on population of birds and bees in view of an expert's claim that their increase could wipe out honey bees in 10 years.
Probing for principles underlying animal flock patterns: A model system for g...
A team of physicists from Germany has developed a versatile biophysical model system that opens the door to studying phenomena such as the seemingly choreographed motion of hundreds or thousands of fish, birds, or insects, and probing their underlying principles. Using a combination of an experimental platform and theoretical models, more complex systems can now be described and their properties ...
Migration of birds a spectacle for all to enjoy
One of the many amazing spectacles of nature has started: the fall migration of birds and butterflies.
Saving a haven
Why drained lagoon could soon be supporting birds again