CORVID.E—GARRULIN.E: JAYS AND PIES. 



495 



a well-known character! Nest in trees and bushes, or any tuld nook, lare^e and substantial, 

 7 or 8 inches across outside X 4 or 5 deep, cupped 3 or 4 X ^-50, with twigs outside, inside 

 (if mixed materials ; eggs in April, May, and June according to locality, 3-G in number, usually 

 4 or 5, 1.00-1.20 X 0.80-0.85, drab-colored varying from greenish to buff, irregularly but 

 generally fully spotted and blotched with the usual brown surface spots and purplish shell- 

 markings. The Jay is one of our handsomest birds, of the worst possible reputation ; it prob- 

 ably destroys more nests, eggs, and young of other birds than any Shrike or Hawk. 

 C. c. florin'cola. (Lat. /os, gen. floris, a flower; incola, an inhabitant; with implied allu- 

 sion to Florida as the " Land of Flowers," though the country was so named in J 512 by Ponce 

 de Leon because he discovered it on Easter Day, Spanish Pascua florida or Pascua deflores.) 

 Florida Blue Jay. Like the last ; smaller, with relatively larger bill, shorter crest, and 

 less white on wings and tail. Length 10.00-11.50; wing and tail about 5.00, rather less than 

 more; white on outer tail-feather under 1.00 in extent. Florida, resident; a local race main- 

 taining its subspeciflc character along tlie Gulf coast to Texas. CouES, Key, 2d-4th eds. 1884- 

 *)0, p. 421, in text; RiuGW. Man. 1887, p. 353; A. 0. U. Lists, 1886-95, No. 477 o. 



{Subgenus Stellerocitta.) 



C. stel'leri. (To G. W. Steller. Fig. 335.) Steller's Jay. Mountain Jay. Pine 

 Jay. J 9 : Whole head, neck, and back sooty blackish, little if any lighter on throat, and 

 with little if any 

 blue on forehead or 

 about eyes ; this 

 sooty color passing 

 insensibly on rump 

 and breast into dull 

 blue. Wings and 

 tail richer blue, 

 crossed with numer- 

 ous black bars, not 

 on secondary cov- 

 erts. Bill and feet 

 black. Young more 

 fuliginous ; wing- 

 bars faint if not 

 wanting. Size of the 

 Eastern Blue Jay, 

 or rather larger. Pa- 

 cific coast region, 

 from portions of Cal- 

 ifornia tlirougli Ore- 

 gon, Washington, 



and British C<dum- K,o. 3&-,. - Steller's Jay. 



bia to Cook Inlet, Alaska, especially in ]>ine belts, as of the ("oast and Casca<k' ranges; but E. 

 to the Rocky Mts., where inosculating witii mncwlopha. This is the typical form, with little 

 or no blue, no whitish on head, and unbarred wing-coverts; running through anuectens, fron- 

 talis, and macrolophn into some very different Mexican forms. Ilaliits, nest, and eggs as 

 described under mncrolopha. (('. s. litorrilis >LvYNARn, Orn. and (>(')1. Apr. 1880, j). 50, Van- 

 couver Island, is rejected as untenable by the .V. 0. U. Committee: see Auk, .Ian. 18!>0, p. (15 

 and p. 91.) 



