rilK I'INOX JAY. ' 



tlie lnj,Mier cniiiiVious furcsts; its favorite liaiiiits are the pifiiMi-cuvcrcd 

 fuutliills of the mini>r nioiintain reg^ioiis, tlic sweet and very palatable seeils 

 of these trees fiirnishinp its favorite fixxl during a considerable |>ortion of 

 tile year. In summer they feed larjjely on insects of all kinds. es|)ecially 

 grasshop|)ers, and are quite e.\|)ert in catching these on the wing: ce<lar 

 and juniper berries, small seeds of various kinds, and different s|)ecies of 

 wild l»errics also enter largely into their bill of fare. .\ great deal of time 

 is si)ent on the ground where they move along in compact Ixnlies while 

 feeiling, much in the manner of Blackbirds, the rearmost birds rising from 

 time to time. Hying over the flock and alighting again in front of the main 

 bodv; thev are rather shy and alert while engaged in feeding. I followed 

 a flock numl)ering several thousands which was feeding in the o|)en pine 

 forest bordering the Klamath \alley, Oregon, for more than half a mile, 

 trving to get a shot at some of them, but in this I was unsuccessful. They 

 would not allow me to get within range. an<l liually they l)ecamc alarmed, 

 took wing, and flew out of sight down the valley. On the ne.xt <lay. 

 Scptcmlicr i8. i88j. I saw a still larger flock, which revealed its presence 

 bv the noise made: these I headed off. and awaited their apjiroach in a 

 dense clump of small ]>ines in which I liad hiiiden: 1 had not l<ing to wait 

 and easily secured several sjjecimens. On .April 4. 1883. I saw another 

 large flock feeding in the open woods, evidently on their return tc» their 

 breeding grounds farther north, and by again getting in front of them I 

 secured .several fine males. The.se birds are said to breed in large numl)ers 

 in the juniix^r groves near the eastern slojjcs of the Cascade Mountains, on 

 the head waters of the Des Chutes River. Oregf)n. I have also seen them 

 in the Yakima Valley, near old Fort Simcoe. in central Wa.shington. in 

 June. 1881. in an oak opening, where they were (piite numerous. Their 

 center of abundance, however, is in the pinon or nut-pine belt, which does 

 not extend north of latitude 40°. if so far. and wherever these trees are 

 found in large numl)crs the Pifion Jay can likewi-;e be looked for with 

 confidence. 



"Their call notes are quite variable: some of them are almost as harsh 

 as the 'chaar' of the Clarke's Nutcracker, others partake nnich of the gabble 

 of the Magpie, and still others resemble more tho.se of the Jays. .A shrill, 

 querulous 'f>i'rli. /t.'/j," or 'whcc. wlicc' is their common call note. While 

 feeding on the ground they kept up a constant chattering, which can l>e 

 heard for quite a distance, and in this way often betray their whereabouts." 



