34 Tlll^ STELLER JAY. * 



.Nfstinjj. — Xcst: a bulky mass of tine twigs thickly plastered centrally with 

 iiiiiil ami lined with tine riMJtlets, placed '>-3<> feet hi^h in evergreen tree t)f thicket, 

 i>r near edge of clearing. l'.(J</s: 3-5, nsually 4, pale bluish green, uniformly but 

 moderately si)otte<l with olive brown and pale rufous and w.lh numerous ".shell- 

 markings" of lavcniler. .\v. size, 1.23 .x ajo (31.2 .\ 22.8). Season: .\pnl 20- 

 .\lay 10: one brood. 



General Range. — .North Pacific Coast district from t'.ray's Harbor and 

 I'uget Suuiid north tn Cook's Inlet, except Prince of Wales Island and the Queen 

 Charlotte grouji ( where dis|)laced by ('. s. carlotlcc). 



Range in Washington. — luitire western j)ortion from summit of Cascades, 

 shading into ( . .v. niihciniii-ii along north bank of the Columbia. Resident. 



Authorities. — ?C'v('"i/nj stcUcn Swains.. (*rn. Com., Jo.irn. Ac. .\'at. Sci. 

 Phila. \ II. iS^7. 193. Cyanocitta stcllcri, Newberry, Rep. Pac. R. R. Surv. VI. 

 pi. 1\'. 1S57. p. 85. T. C&S. L' : Rh. Ra. Kk. 1',. K. 



Specimens. — V. of W. Prov. E. R. P>.\'. 



.M ISCI HI'"!*" and the "Blue Jay " are synonymous. .\Iert, restless, saucy, 

 in(|itisitive, and provoking, yet always interesting, this handsome brigand 

 keeps his human critics in a ])eri)etual see-saw l)etween wrath and admiration. 

 .\s a sprightly piece of Xature, the Steller Jay is an unqualified success. .\s 

 the hero-subject of a guessing contest he is without a iK'er. for rme never knows 

 what he is doing until he has done it. and none may i)rcdict what he will do 

 ne.xt. 



Tiie pioneers are especially bitter against liim. an<! they are unanimous in 

 accusing the bird of malicious destructivencss in the gardens, which are dearer 

 than the apple of the eye during the first years of wilderness life. The bircfs 

 will eat anything, and so, tiring of bugs an<l slugs, are not averse to trying 

 corn, cabbage leaves, or, l>est of all, |>otatoes. They have observed the tedious 

 operation of the gardener in planting, and know precisely where the c<>vete<l 

 tubers lie. Bright and early the follow ing morning they slij) to the eilge of the 

 clearing, jxtst one of their number as lookout, then silently de])loy U|)on their 

 ghovdish task. If they weary of potatoes. s])routing ])eas or corn will do. (^r 

 jjcrhaps there may Ik? something interesting at the base of this young ti>mato 

 plant. .\nd when the irate farmer appears u])on the scene, the maraiulers retire 

 to the forest shrieking with laughter at the discomfitted swain. .\y ! there's 

 the rub! We may endure injury but not insult. I'ang! Bang! 



.\s a connoisseur of birds' eggs, t(K», the Steller Jay enjoys a bad 

 eminence. The sufferers in this case are chiefly the lesser song birds; but no 

 eggs whatever are exempt from his covetous glance, if left imguarded. The 

 lav has become csjK'ciallv proficient in the discovery and sacking of Bush-tits' 

 nests. Mr. D. E. Brown assures me that he has found as high as fifteen nests 

 of this bird in a single swamp, all gutte<l by J.iys. When it is rememl)ered 

 that these busy little workers make one of the handsomest nests in the world, 

 the shame of this piracy gets upon the nerves. The investigation of Tits' 

 nests has something of the fa.scination of the gaming table f<)r the Jay, since 



