HUMMINOniRD. 37 



cownrd, fincak, and niffian, Init I think these tcrmn fiomowhat severe. 

 The jay does not know how wicked ho is, ho wo sliould bear with 

 him and indulge him in his foi1)Ies, even if he does take a few 

 berries and is a bit cantankerous now and then. 1 fear we 

 will excuiie him for even worse faults, for somehow wo like the 

 fellow. His pronounced individuality and liohemian ways make 

 him interesting, and wo would not change him if we could. 



The nest of this species is usually placed in a coniferous tree, 

 some twenty feet from the ground, and is made of loosely arranged 

 twigs and roots. The eggs, four or five in number, are of a pale 

 olive or huffish tint, and spotted with yellowish brown. 



The plumage of tho blue jay is very beautiful. The general color 

 is bright purplish blue, which is paler beneath and shades to whito 

 on the throat. The wings and tail are of brighter blue, and are barred 

 with black and trimmed with white. Tho head is adorned with a 

 conspicuous crest. 



HUMMINGBIRD. 



i^merica is the home of the hummingbirds, for nowhere else do 

 we find these beautiful creatures — tho most beautiful and the 

 daintiest of the a\'ian race. There are over four hundred species 

 in all, and the centre of their abundance is in tho tropical portions 

 of the southern half of the continent, fourteen species only occurring 

 within the border of the United States. Of this northern detach- 

 ment, but one — the ruby-throated — penetrates as far as Canada. 

 Our one representative of this unique family is, however, well-known 

 throughout this eastern country, for its breeding area extends from 

 Florida and the Rio Grande to the Laurentian hills and the country 

 bordering on the Saskatchewan. * 



Mr. McHwraith tells us that the ruby-throats enter Ontario about 

 the middle of May, and I have met the van of their scouting parties 

 away up in Northern New Brunswick before the end of that same 

 month. 



These tiny mites are happy only amid the summer sunshine and 

 the flowers, so when the summer leaves us, oflf go the ruby-throats 



