BIEDS OF KANSAS . 81 



our dwellings; an active, restless bird, ever upon the 

 move, flying and hopping about among the branches of 

 trees, often swinging head downward in its search for 

 insect life, upon which it almost wholly feeds during the 

 early breeding season, singing as it flies, or from the perch 

 littering its hurried but pleasing song, which is occasion- 

 ally heard in autumn. 



Their nests are suspended from twigs, at the end of 

 branches of small trees, along the banks of streams and 

 in orchards and gardens ; a beautiful hemispherical nest, 

 made wholly of a long, slender, wire-like grass, and occa- 

 sionally bits of a cottony substance, neatly and ingen- 

 iously woven together and around the leaf-like twigs that 

 support it. Eggs four or five, .85x.60; pale bluish white, 

 thinly marked with specks and zigzag lines of light to 

 reddish brown and lilac, thickest about larger end; in 

 form, oval. 



XX. BLUE JAY. 



Cyanocitta cristata (LiNN.). 



Eesident ; abundant in the eastern portion of the State ; 

 common along the streams, where skirted with trees, to a 

 little beyond the center; not observed in the extreme 

 western part. Begin laying the last of April. 



HABITAT. Eastern United States, except Florida 

 (where they are replaced by 0. cristata florincola') ; north 

 into the fur regions of the British possessions; west to 

 the Great Plains. 



Iris dark brown ; bill, legs, feet and claws black. 



I know that I cannot please the reader better than by 

 giving the following interesting description, by ISTuttall, 

 6 



