THE JAY. 381 



shiuing black. The female bird may be at once known by the absence 

 of the black streak across the eye, which in her case is replaced by a 

 light-colored stripe over the eye. The head and all the upper parts of the 

 body are reddish brown, and the red edges of the wing feathers are nar- 

 rower than in the male. The under side of the body is wholly grayish 

 white, covered with very numerous transverse lines of a darker hue. 



We now arrive at a very large and important group, called, from the 

 shape of their beaks, the Conirostres, or Cone-billed Birds. In these 

 birds the bill varies in length and development, in some being exceed- 

 ingly short, while in others it is much elongated ; in some being straight 

 and simple, while in others it is curiously curved and furnished with 

 singular appendages ; in some being toothless, while in others there is a 

 small but perceptible tooth near the tip. In all, however, the bill 

 is more or less conical in form, being very thick and rounded at 

 the base, and diminishing to a point at the extremity. There are no 

 less than eight recognized families, of this large group, containing 

 some of the most important and most remarkable members of the 

 feathered race. 



The first femily is that which is well known under the title of Cor- 

 vidse, or Crows, containing the crows, rooks, mag})ies, starlings, and 

 other familiar birds, together with the equally-celebrated bower birds 

 and less known paradise birds, troopials, and orioles. The beak of all 

 these birds is long, powerful, and somewhat compressed — i. e., flattened 

 at the sides — curved more or less on the ridge of the upper mandible, 

 and with a notch at the extremity. 



The best known of the Garruline or talkative birds is our common 

 English Jay, one of the handsomest of our resident birds. 



The ordinary note of the Jay is a rathei* soft cry, but the bird is a 

 most adroit imitator of various sounds, particularly those of a harsh 

 character. It has one especially harsh scream, which is its note of 

 alarm, and serves to set on the alert not only its own kind, but every 

 other bird that happens to be within hearing. The sportsman is often 

 baffled in his endeavors to get a shot at his game by the mingled curi- 

 osity and timidity of the Jay, which cannot hear a strange rustling or 

 see an unaccustomed object without sneaking silently up to inspect it, 

 and is so terribly frightened at the sight of a man, a dog, and a gun 

 that it dashes off in alarm, uttering its loud "squawk," which indicates 

 to every bird and beast that danger is abroad. 



The Jay, like all the Crow tribe, will eat animal or vegetable sub- 

 stances with equal zest, and wnll plunder the hoards of small quadrupeds 

 or swallow the owner with perfect impartiality. Young birds are a 

 favorite food of the Jay, which is wonderfully clever at discovering 

 nests and devouring the fledgelings. Occasionally it feeds even upon 

 birds, and has been seen to catch a full-grown thrush. Eggs are also 



