270 NORTH AMERICAN IJIUDS. 



Pica caudata, var. nuttalli, Aud. 



YELLOW- BILLED MAGPIE. 



Fiat niittiiJIi, Am. Om. lUo;;. IV, Ks:JS, 450, pi. ocilxii. — fB. Syn. 1839, 15'2. — In. Hinls 

 Am. IV, 1^42, 104, pi. cc.x.wiii. — liuN. List, l>a8. — lis. ('onsiK'itus, IS.'.O, ;JS:3. — 

 NiriT.VLL, Man. I, ("Jtl td.,) 1840, 23t). — Ni:v, bkkkv, Hep. P. \\. K. \'I, iv, 18J7, 84. 

 — iJ.viui), IJinls N. Am, 1858, 578, pi. xxvi. — Hkkh.m. X, *S', 54. — ('o<»n.i:, Oni. 

 Cal. 1, 1870, 2y5. Clcj}tcs nuttaUi, Uamdkl, J. A. N. Se. V\\. 'lA Serie.s, I, 1847, 4»5. 



Sp. Ch.vk. Bill, and naked i^kin behind the oyo. brijrht yellow ; otherwise similar to P. 

 hihlstniini. Lenirth, 17.0(1; win^'. 8.00; tail, 10.00. 



Hah. California (Sacramento Valley, and southern coast region). 



We cannot look npon tlie Yellow-billed Ma;j:pie otherwi.se tlian as a local 

 race of the common kind, since it is well known that amonj' the Javs manv 

 si»ecies Iinve the hill either black or yellow according to sex, aj^^e, or l(>cality ; 

 and as the Yellow-billed Magpie occupies a more s(juthern locality than 

 usual, and one . erv ditlerer:t from that of the black-billed species, it well 

 may exhibit a special geographical variation. The great restriction in range 

 is anotlier argrment in favor of its being a simple variety. 



Habits. The Yellow-billed Magpie seems to be exclusively a bird of 

 California, where it is very abundant, and wliere it replaces almo.st entirely 

 tlie more eastern form. Mr. IJid^wav, who met with this variety only in 

 tlie valley of the Sacramento, states that he there found it very abundant 

 among tlie oaks of that region. It differed from the common Magpie in 

 being exceedingly gregarious, moving about among the oak groves in small 

 companies, incessantly chattering as it Hew, or as it sat among the branches 

 of the trees. He saw many of their nests in the tops of the oaks, — indeed, 

 all were so situated, — yet he never met with the nests of the other species 

 in a high tree, not even in the river valleys. The young of this Magpie 

 have the white cf the scapulars marked with rusty triangular spots. 



l>r. Cooper found this Magpie abundant in the valleys of California, espe- 

 cially near the middle of the State, except during the spring montlis, when 

 none were seen in the Santa Clara Yalley, the supposition being that they 

 had retiri'd eastward to the mountains to build their nests. At Santa liar- 

 bara he found them numerou.s in April and ^lay, and saw their nests in oak- 

 trees. The young were alrea ly fledged by the 2r)th of April. The nest, i^e 

 states, is comjiosed of a large mass of coarse twigs twisted together in a 

 spherical form, with a hole in the side. The eggs he saw resembled those 

 of the other species, and are descrilK^l as being whitish -green, spotted with 

 cinereous-gray and olive-brown. They also breed abundantly about ^lon- 

 terey. They have not been traced to the northern border of the State. 



Their food, Dr. Cooper adds, consists of almost everything animal and 

 veget-'ible that they can find, and they come a])out farms and gardens to })ick 

 up whatever they can meet with. They have a loud call that sounds like 



