THE CALIFORNIA JAY. 31 



as well as a wag, and infinitely more interesting than a stupfd parrot. Mis- 

 cliief is his special forte: the untying of shoe-strings, the investigation of 

 cavities, the secreting of spoons, and the aimless abstractiim of gold teeth 

 are his unending delight. Once when the writer was shelling seed peas in 

 the garden, a spoiled "Jackity" assayed to fill his (the man's) ears with these 

 innocent pellets ; and when he discovered a rent in the knee of the man's 

 trousers, he fairlv chortled. ••\\'e]l ; I see mvself busv for a week filling that 

 hole!" 



Cage life is irksome for Ijird or Ijeast ; Ijut. if we must be amused, and. 

 above all, if we feel called upon to pass adverse judgment upon this gifted 

 bundle (jf contradictious, as he exists in a state of nature, let onr harshest 

 sentence be sociable confinement with occasional freedom on parole. A bird 

 in the cage is worth two in the obitnarv columns. 



No. 8. 



CALIFORNIA JAY. 



A. O. U. No. 4S1. Aphelocoma calif ornica (Vigors). 



Description. — Adults: In general blue, changing to brownish gray on back 

 (scapulars and interscapulars), whitening variously on underparts ; crown, hind 

 neck and sides of neck dull cobalt blue, nearly uniform; wings, tail, and upper 

 tail-coverts dull azure blue : cheeks and auriculars cobalt blue and dusky ; chin, 

 throat, and chest, centrally, white, the last-named with admixture of blue in 

 streaks, and passing into the clear blue of its sides ; breast sordid gray, passing 

 into dull white of remaining underparts : shorter under tail-coverts pi'ire white, 

 the longer ones tinged with pale blue ; bill and feet black ; iris brown. In young 

 birds the blue of adults is supplanted by mouse-gray on head and lower neck, 

 rump, etc., save that crown is tinged with blue; the gray of back is of a deeper 

 shade ; the underparts are white, save for light brownish wash across breast and 

 sides. Length of adult males 11. 50-12.25; wing 5.00 (127); tail 5.60 (143); 

 bill i.oo (25.4) ; tarsus 1.60 (41 ). Females slightly smaller. 



Recognition Marks. — Robin size; blue coloration without crest; whitish 

 underparts. 



Nesting. — Nest: a bed of small twigs without mud and heavily lined with 

 fine dead grass ; 8 inches across outside by 33-^ in depth — thus much smaller and 

 lighter than that of the Steller Jay — placed at moderate elevation in tree or bush 

 in thicket near water. Eggs: 3-6, usually 4 or 5, deep green of varying shades, 

 spotted with reddish browns. Av. size, i.ii x .82 (28.2 x 20.8). Season: first 

 week in May ; one brood. 



General Range. — Pacific Coast district of United States, including eastern 

 slopes of the Sierra Nevada and the Cascade Range in Oregon, north to south- 

 western Washington. 



