BLUE OR METALLIC BLUE 493 
requisite seems to be necessary for their existence in 
other ways than for drinking. Early every morning 
every adult Jay takes a cold bath, the colder the better ; 
but the water must be clear. <A tremendous splashing 
is followed by a long, careful preening of the feathers, 
which frequently occupies fifteen minutes or longer. 
Long, close watching has led me to believe that, except 
where there are young in the nest to be fed, this toilet is 
made before any hunting is done for breakfast. 
The male assists in the nest-building, but not in 
the incubation. The latter requires fourteen days. The 
mother during the brooding time plunges down to the 
water once or twice a day, returning to her eggs with 
feathers still damp, fusses about as if turning them before 
settling down upon them, and in a moment rises up and 
fusses again. This may be only for her own greater 
comfort, but I have wondered whether the moisture was 
necessary for the eggs. As soon as they hatch she ceases 
to bathe in this way, and, devoting her time to obtaining 
food, becomes dishevelled and rusty-looking. 
One of the first lessons the young Jays learn is to love 
the water. It requires some coaxing for the first splash, 
but they seem to take to their bath as do little ducks, 
and to find it just as necessary as food. 
492, PINON JAY.—C ‘yanocephalus cyanocephalus. 
Famity : The Crows, Jays, Magpies, etc. 
Length : 10.00-11.75. 
Adults: Entire plumage grayish blue, brighter on head ; throat bright 
blue, with white streaks ; head not crested ; bill cylindrical. 
