COUVUS OSSIRFAGUS. 161 



spcct, they never visit the nests excepting in the absence of their owners. The Crows are 

 ' always on the alert, however, and when a nest is left unguarded, even for a moment, they 

 will dart into it, plunge their beaks through the shell of the eggs and carry them away. 

 I i >m-(> i'Dund a nest of a Fish Crow built in a low tree which was completely surrounded 

 by the shells of Cormorant's eggs, each of which was emptied through a hole in the side. 

 There was a rookery on a neighboring island and the Crows spent their time in flying about 

 it, frequently returning with an egg. "Whenever we visited a heronry or Cormorant rookery 

 the Fish Crows had a fine time, for, evidently understanding what we were after and know- 

 ing that the parent birds would retreat before us, they came in numbers and, as they were 

 not shy, would always manage to obtain their share of the eggs. Indeed upon one occasion 

 they carried away all the eggs from a heronry, consisting of upwards of a hundred nests, 

 in an hour's time. 



Of the three species of this genus which occur in Eastern North America, the Raven is 

 the least active, the gravest and the heaviest flyer; next, as an intermediate, comes the 

 Common Crow; while the present species represents the other extreme, being full of nervous 

 activity, flying with a quicker motion of the wings, and seldom sailing. They also stop 

 suddenly and will wheel as readily in the air as a Red-winged Blackbird. They move in 

 straggling flocks and as they go utter the ha-ha which, although not much lower than that of 

 the Common Crow, has such a peculiar intonation as to be recognizable at once. They mi- 

 grate constantly through the winter, and large numbers often pass a given point, thus I 

 have seen them flying for several hours over the Everglades. At such a time, if I shot one 

 and it fell where its companions could see it, they would hover over the spot, then circle 

 about, vociferating loudly, often coming within a few yards of my head. They appear to 

 select particular spots as roosting places, generally in swamps, to which they return before 

 sundown and depart after s mrise. These Crows breed about the first week in April, fre- 

 quently in communities but I have found single nests. The structures are very large for 

 the size of the bird and are placed in trees. Taken all together the Fish Crows can scarce- 

 ly be considered as useful birds but they are decidedly characteristic of southern maritime 

 scenery, and many a barren reach of sea-board is enlivened by their cnegetie movements 

 ami quaint cries. 



I have spoken of the Fish Crows as inhabitants of the sea-shore, but I have also found 

 them on the rivers in the interior of Florida and judge that they occur on large bodies of 

 fresh water some distance from the sea, yet think that in winter they are by far more nu- 

 merous along the coast. I have seen them as far north as Norfolk, Virginia, as late as 

 the tenth of November, but they were migrating then, yet it is possible that some remain- 

 ed all winter. 



(JF.NTS II. (YANTUUS. THE BLUE JAYS. 



('i.\. CH. Bill, stout and conical, a lit/le shnrtrr than the head which is crested. Winys, alxiut nfual in Icnyth to the 

 taU which it well rounded. Sternum, will proportioned. Marginal indentations equa/iny ini/tji/h the htiykt of /!.<' /.-/</. 

 Size, not larye. 



The prevailing mlnr. ibovoat lei~t. i< blue which, with the crested head, renders the species in this genus conspicuous. 

 The wings arc usually barred with black. 



UIRDS OF 1 LORI1M. 21 



