JAYS. 



birds varied with acorns, beechnuts, chestnuts, corn, 

 and fruite of different kinds. They are not at all par- 

 ticular when hungry, ibut will eat almost anything, and 

 have been seen picking up raw potato peelings, old 

 dried-up apples, etc. Where they are resident they lay 

 up quite a store of acorns, corn, and nuts in various 

 places for winter use, but where (they are only summer 

 visitors they do not resort to this practice. In the fall 

 they congregate in large flocks preparatory to their 

 jnigrations. They usually leave their summer homes in 

 the latter part of September, returning again late in 

 April or early in iMay." 



" Throughout the greater part of the year the Blue 

 Jay is a more or less restless, noisy, and roving bird, 

 moving in little companies from one wood to another ; 

 during the nesting season it becomes more quiet and 

 .retiring, and is less often seen or heard. It prefers 

 .mixed woods to live in, especially oak and beech woods, 

 but for nesting sites dense coniferous thickets are 

 .generally preferred; oaks, elms, hickories, and various 

 .fruit trees, thorn bushes, and shrubbery overrun with 

 vines are also used, the nests being placed in various 

 .situations, sometimes in a crotch or close to the main 

 .trunk, or on the extremity of a horizontal limb, among 

 the outer branches. They are placed at distances from 

 the ground varying from 5 to 50 feet, but usually below 

 :20 feet. In the more southern parts of their range nest 

 building begins in the latter part of March, and full 

 sets of eggs may be looked (for 'by April 15. In our 

 Middle States it nests a couple of weeks later, and in 

 the northern portions frequently not before June. I 

 "believe but one brood is usually reared in a season, but 

 in the south they may occasionally raise two. 



" The nests are generally well hidden, and are rather 

 'bulky but compactly-built structures, averaging from 

 7 to 8 inches in outer diameter by 4 to 4 inches in 

 depth ; the inner cup measures about 3^ to 4 inches in 

 diameter by 2 inches in depth. Outwardly they are 

 composed of small twigs (thorny ones being preferred), 

 foark, moss, lichens, paper, rags, strings, wool, leaves, 

 and dry grasses, the various materials being well incor- 

 porated and sometimes cemented together with mud, 

 but not always ; the lining is usually composed exclu- 

 sively of fine rootlets. Occasionally the Blue Jay will 

 take the nest of another species by force. 



" The number of eggs to a set varies from three to 

 six ; sets of four or five are most often found, and an 

 egg is deposited daily. Both sexes assist in incuba- 

 tion, which lasts from fifteen ito sixteen days. ' The 

 young grow rather slowly, and are fed on insects, 

 worms, and animal food. They often leave the nest 

 before they are fully feathered, and when scarcely able 

 to fly. At this time thev frequently betray their pre- 

 sence by their incessant clamour for food, never appear- 

 ing to get enough to satisfy their enormous appetites. 

 The parents are exceedingly devoted to them, and are 

 close sitters. Instances have been recorded where a 

 femaHe Blue Jay allowed -her head and back to be 

 stroked while sitting on her eggs. The eggs of the 

 "Blue Jay vary greatly in their ground-colour. In. some 

 'this is olive-green, olive-buff, and pea-green ; in others 

 it is plain buff colour, or again cream and vinaceous 

 buff. This is irregularly spotted; and blotched with 

 different shades of. browns and lavender, the markings 

 : being generally heaviest about the larger end. A pecu- 

 liar set of three eggs in the United States National 

 "Museum collection has a pale bluish-green ground- 

 colour, with only a few rather large blotches of slate 

 and lavender about the larger end, and one of these 

 eggs is almost unspotted. The shell is smooth, close 

 prained, rather strong, and occasionally slightly glossy. 

 The eggs are usually ovate in shape. 



" The average measurements of one hundred and thirty- 

 five eggs in the United States National Museum collec- 

 tion is 28.02 by 20.44 millimetres, or about 1.10 by 

 0.81 inches." 



The London Zoological Society purchased ite first 

 example of this bird in July, 1855, since which time 

 many other specimens have been exhibited! in the 

 Regent's Park Gardens, and Buss speaks of it as almost 

 always to ibe .met with in Zoological 'Gardens, though on 

 account of its high price he says it is rarely to be found 

 in private collections. In England it has been occa- 

 sionally exhibited. 



CROWNED JAY (Cyanocitto, coronata). 



Back and scapulars above purplish grey or dull ultra- 

 marine ; lower back and rump azure blue, which becomes 

 still brighter blue on the upper tail-coverts ; wings ultra- 

 marine; inner secondaries brighter and barred with 

 black ; greater wing-coverts also indistinctly barred ; 

 tail ultramarine, the inner webs purple-brownish ; (head 

 and throat dead black, the whole crest dull cobalt or 

 ultramarine blue ; the plumes on forehead whitish ; chin 

 and throat greyish white; rest of under surface tur- 

 quoise blue, more purplish on breast ; thighs and under 

 wing-coverts greyish black washed with blue ; bill and 

 feet iblack. Female smaller than male. Hab., High- 

 lands of Mexico. 



Professor Eidgway regards this and the following as 

 sub-species of Steller's Jay (Oyanocitta stelleri), but Dr. 

 Sharpe keeps them separate. 



I have found no notes on the wild life of this bird, 

 but they probably would not differ greatly from those 

 of other species in the genus. 



The London Zoological Gardens secured two specimens 

 of the Crowned Jay in May, 1890. 



LONG-CHESTED JAY (Cyanocitta diademata') . 



Above greenish blue, more azure on rump and upper 

 taill-coverts ; wings and tail deeper blue, more inclining 

 'to ultramarine ; the primaries externally somewhat 

 greenish ; the secondaries bright cobalt blue ; greater 

 wing-coverts, inner secondaries and tail-feathers dis- 

 tinctly barred with black ; crown and crest ultramarine 

 Wue ; the forehead silvery azure passing into bright 

 azure on the front of the crown ; nasal bristles and 

 sides of face black ; cheeks and ear-coverts washed with 

 blue ; a white spot above the eye and a smaller one 

 below it ; chin greyish white ; rest of under surface 

 pale turquoise, more purplish on throat and chest ; 

 thighs purplish ; under wing-coverts greyish black 

 washed with blue ; bill and feet black. Female smaller 

 than male. Hab., Mexico and Western United States. 



J. G. Cooper says that the .habits of this species are 

 much like those of O. stelleri, respecting which he says 

 ("Ornithology of California," Vol. I., p. 299) : " They 

 show a decided preference for the coniferous forests, 

 rarely going far from them, but sometimes in winter 

 frequenting those of oak. Their food consists of seeds 

 of the pines and spruces, berries and acorns, which they 

 crack 'before eating, besides insects, eggs, and any 

 animal food they can get. They even eat potatoes in 

 winter, and resort to the shores for dead fish. They 

 are very noisy birds, having a variety of harsh notes 

 and a considerable talent for mimicry. They are some- 

 times very bold and prying, at others very cautious and 

 suspicious, soon learning the effect of a gun, and show- 

 ing much sagacity in their movements. 



" Their nests are built usually in evergreens at various 

 heights, large, and composed of twigs and roots, with 

 a layer of mud and a lining of root-fibres. The eggs, 

 about four, are pale green, with small olive-brown 

 specks, and others inclining to violet. (Nuttall.) 



