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C O R V U S. 



jay of Europe. It is very generally distributed over 

 at least the more temperate parts of North America ; 

 and we cannot bring it so well before the reader as 

 in the language of that prince of all ornithologists, 

 Alexander Wilson. 



" This elegant bird," says this eloquent child and 

 worshipper of wild nature, " which, as far as I can 

 learn, is peculiar to North America, is distinguished 

 as a sort of beau among the feathered tenants of our 

 woods by the brilliancy of his dress ; and like most 

 other coxcombs, makes himself still more conspicuous 

 by his loquacity and the oddness of his tones and 

 gestures. The jay measures eleven inches in length ; 

 the head is ornamented with a crest of light blue or 

 purple feathers, which he can elevate or depress at 

 pleasure ; a narrow line of black runs along the 

 frontlet, rising on each side higher than the eye, but 

 not passing over it ; back and upper part of the neck 

 a fine light purple, in which the blue predominates ; 

 a collar of black, proceeding from the hind head, 

 passes with a graceful curve down each side of the 

 neck to the upper part of the breast, where it forms a 

 crescent ; chin, cheeks, throat, and belly, white, the 

 three former slightly tinged with blue ; greater wing- 

 coverts, a rich blue ; exterior sides of the primaries, 

 light blue, those of the secondaries a deep purple, 

 except the three feathers next the body, which are of 

 a splendid light blue ; all these, except the primaries, 

 are beautifully barred with crescents of black, and 

 tipt with white ; the interior sides of the wing-feathers 

 are dusky black ; tail long and cuneiform, composed 

 of twelve feathers of a glossy light blue, marked at 

 half inches with transverse curves of black, each 

 feather being tipt with white, except the two middle 

 ones, which deepen into a dark purple at the extre- 

 mities. Breast and sides under the wings a dirty 

 white, faintly stained with purple ; inside of the mouth, 

 the tongue, bill, legs, and claws, black ; iris of the 

 eye hazel. 



" The blue jay is an almost universal inhabitant of 

 the woods, frequenting the thickest settlements as 

 well as the deepest recesses of the forest, where his 

 squalling voice often alarms the deer, to the disap- 

 pointment and mortification of the hunter ; one of 

 whom informed me, he made it a point, in summer, to 

 kill every jay he could meet with. In the charming 

 season of spring, when every thicket pours forth har- 

 mony, the part performed by the jay always catches 

 the ear. He appears to be among his fellow musi- 

 cians what the trumpeter is in a band, some of his 

 notes having no distant resemblance to the tones of 

 that instrument. These he has the faculty of changing 

 through a great variety of modulations, according to 

 the particular humour he happens to be in. When 

 disposed for ridicule, there is scarce a bird whose 

 peculiarities of song he cannot tune his notes to. 

 When engaged in the blandishments of love, they 

 resemble the soft.chatterings of a duck, and while he 

 nestles among the thick branches of the cedar, are 

 scarce heard at a few paces distance ; but he no 

 sooner discovers your approach than he sets up a 

 sudden and vehement outcry, flying- off, and screaming 

 with all his might, as if he called the whole feathered 

 tribes of the neighbourhood to witness some out- 

 rageous usage he had received. When he hops 

 undisturbed among the high branches of the oak and 

 hickory, they become soft and musical ; and his 

 call of the female a stranger would readily mistake 

 for the repeated screakings of an ungreased wheel- 



barrow. All these he accompanies with various nods, 

 jerks, and other gesticulations, for which the who e 

 tribe of jays are so remarkable, that with some otaer 

 peculiarities they might have very well justified the 

 great Swedish naturalist in forming them into a 

 separate genus by themselves. 



" The blue jay builds a large nest, frequently in the 

 cedar, sometimes on an apple tree, lines it with dry 

 fibrous roots, and lays five eggs of a dull olive, 

 spotted with brown. The male is particularly care- 

 ful of not being heard near the place, making his 

 visits as silently and secretly as possible. His 

 favourite food is chestnuts, acorns, and Indian corn. 

 He occasionally feeds on bugs, caterpillars, and 

 sometimes pays a plundering visit to the orchard, 

 cherry rows and potato patch ; and has been known 

 in times of scarcity to venture into the barn, through 

 openings between the weather boards. In these 

 cases he is extremely active and silent, and, if surprised 

 in the fact, make his escape with precipitation, but 

 without noise, as if conscious of his criminality. 



"Of all birds he is the most bitter enemy to the owl. 

 No sooner has he discovered the retreat of one of 

 these, than he summons the whole feathered fraternity 

 to his assistance, who surround the glimmering solitaire 

 and attack him from all sides, raising such a shout as 

 may be heard in a still day more than half a mile off. 

 When in my hunting excursions, I have passed near 

 this scene ot tumult, I have imagined to myself that 

 I heard the insulting party venting their respective 

 charges with all the virulency of a Billingsgate mob ; 

 the owl meanwhile returning every compliment with 

 a broad goggling stare. The war becomes louder 

 and louder, and the owl at length, forced to betake 

 himself to flight, is followed by his whole train of 

 persecutors, until driven beyond the boundaries of 

 their jurisdiction. 



" But the blue jay himself is not guiltless of similar 

 depredations with the owl, and becomes in his turn 

 the very tyrant he detested, when he sneaks through 

 the woods, as he frequently does, and among the 

 thickets and hedge rows, plundering every nest he 

 can find of its eggs, tearing up the callow young by 

 piecemeal, and spreading alarm and sorrow around 

 him. The cries of the distressed parents soon bring 

 together a number of interested spectators (for birds in 

 such circumstances seem truly to sympathise with 

 each other), and he is sometimes attacked with such 

 spirit as to be under the necessity of making a 

 speedy retreat." 



Corvus Canadensis (the Canada jay) is by no means 

 so showy a bird as the former. It is described as 

 being " eleven inches long, and fifteen in the extent 

 of the wings ; back, wings, and tail, a dull leaden grey, 

 the latter long, cuneiform, and tipt with dirty white ; 

 interior vanes of the wings brown, and also partly 

 tipt with white ; plumage of the head low and pro- 

 minent ; the forehead and feathers covering the 

 nostrils, as well as the whole lower parts, a dirty 

 brownish white, which also passes round the bottom 

 of the neck like a collar ; part of the crown, and hind 

 head black ; bill and legs, also black ; eye dark 

 hazel. The whole plumage on the back is long, 

 loose, unwebbed, and in great abundance, as if to 

 protect it from the rigours of the regions it inhabits. 



"A gentleman of observation, who resided for many 

 years near the North River, not far from Hudson, in 

 the state of New York, informs me that he has parti- 

 cularly observed this bird to arrive there at the 



