The birds of Ontario in relation to agriculture / by Charles W. Nash.

Abstract

The agriculturist in the Province of Ontario has annually to suffer gjreat loss from the depredations of two classes of enemies, both individually insignificant, but, by reason of their numbers, very formidable. These are insects and small rodents, chief among the latter being rats and all the animals usually classed as micfe.It is very difficult to make anything like a correct estimate of the average damage inflicted upon the farmer by these little animals, but every man engaged in farming knows by sad experience that he continually suffers from their work. The enormous amount of grain they destroy, and the young trees girdled and killed by them are visible to everyone ; but the creatures themselves, owing to their nocturnal habits and secretive lives, are comparatively seldom seen. Their enormous increase and consequent capacity for serious mischief is, of course, owing to the fact that man has interfered seriously with the balance of nature, and has thoughtlessly, perhaps, destroyed the principal natural enemies of these creatures.Man himself is almost powerless to stop their ravages to any very great extent.The constant exercise of his ingenuity in trapping, and so forth, results in very little and occupies his time to no purpose. The natural enemies of these animals are gifted with special faculties for their destruction, and so are able to cope with them. Chief among the enemies of this class of farm pests, and the only ones we shall consider now, are the birds of prey. These birds are wonderfully provided by nature with the means to fulfil their part in maintaining the correct balance between the small rodents and the vegetable kingdom. They are in a manner nature's police, and if not destroyed by man would so keep down the numbers of these small four-footed thieves that their plundering would be scarcely noticeable.Our birds of prey may be roughly divided into two classes, the hawks and the owls, the first feeding by day and the other by night. Of the eagles we need say but little. They are now so rarely found in the civilized districts that their influence for good or ill is practically nothing, except upon the game, and of that no doubt, they destroy a large quantity. HAWKS.Of the hawks there are eleven species, occurring regularly in this Province in greater or less abundance every season. [3] Hawk, Broad-winged Hawk, Rough-legged Hawk and Sparrow Hawk.Nearly everyone knows the Marsh Hawk and has seen it gracefully skimming over the low meadows, occasionally hanging poised over one spot for a second or two, and then dropping down into the long grass ; this drop generally means the death of a meadow mouse, sometimes, but more rarely, a Irog; of these two creatures its food principally consists, and the number of meadow mice destroyed by each of these birds in a season must be something enormous. As many as eight have been found in the stomach of one of these hawks, and four or five quite frequently. The hawk's digestion is very rapid, and their hunting and feeding is continued with but few intermissio...

Wood-polymer composites - general characteristics and their preparation from waste materials

“…z rynku niemieckiego, oewiadcz¹ o 6-proc. wzrooecie udzia³u w 2007 r. pokryae pod³ogowych z WPC [6], a dane z Ameryki Pó³nocnej informuj¹ o sprzeda¿y wyrobów z WPC w 2006 r. o wartooeci ponad 1 mld dolarów [7]. Aktualn¹ strukturê rynku wyrobów z WPC w Ameryce P³n.…”

“…przedstawia rys. 1 [6]. Jak widaae, dominuj¹cy asortyment to poszycia pod³ogowe, oecienne i dachowe; podobnie kszta³towa³a siê sprzeda¿ WPC w Europie [8].…”

It's the Economy! A Long Term Strategy to Resolve the Brcko Issue and Achieve Regional Stability in Bosnia.

“…These criminals must continue to be isolated, using time and economic prosperity to diminish their influence and then allow captured at an opportune time. 75 Even the President of the Republic of Srpska, Biljana Plavsic, has stated that she sees an eventual transfer of all Serb war criminals. 76 Continued diplomatic pressure and economic prosperity will, over time, will enable these criminals to be brought to trial without reigniting the war and destroying the country.…”

The Lapita Occupation at Naitabale, Moturiki Island, Central Fiji

“…As adults, Trochidae are sedentary animals, and their movements are limited to distances of no more than a few tens of meters in their lifetimes (Nash 1988). This factor, together with the potential meat packet offered by the larger specimens, make T. niloticus a particularly attractive resource.…”