THE JAY. 



GARRULUS GLANDARIUS. 



Feathers of the crest greyish white, streaked with black ; a black moustache 

 from the corners of the beak ; general plumage reddish grey, darker above ; 

 primaries dingy black ; secondaries velvet-black and pure white ; inner tertials 

 rich chestnut ; winglet and greater coverts barred with black, white, and 

 bright blue ; upper and under tail-coverts pure white ; iris bright blue ; beak 

 black ; feet livid brown. Length thirteen and a half inches ; breadth twenty- 

 two inches. Eggs dull green, minutely and thickly speckled with olive-brown. 



There exists among gamekeepers a custom of selecting a 

 certain spot in preserved woods, and tliere suspending, as 

 trophies of their skill and watchfulness, the bodies of such 

 destructive animals as they have killed in the pursuit of 

 their calling. They are generally those of a few stoats 

 or weasels, a Hawk, a Magpie, a cat, and two or three 

 Jays. All these animals are judged to be destructive to 

 game, and are accordingly hunted to the death, the Jay, 

 perhaps, with less reason than the rest, for though it can 

 hardly resist the temptation of plundering, either of eggs 

 or young, any nest, wliether of Partridge or Pheasant, that 



