May I9OI.] LAND HIRDS OF SANTA CRUZ COI^XTY. IT 



55. Pica nuttalli And. Yellow-billed Magpie. 



Regarding this species, Dr. C. L. Anderson of Santa Cruz writes me: 

 "Has not been seen in this county, as far as I know, for twenty-five years. 

 I saw a few myself the first year of my residence here about 1S70. 1 can- 

 not say it resides here now." The magpie probably occurs within the 

 county on the vSan Benito River, below vSargents. 



56. Cyanocitta stelleri carbonacea Griunell.'^ Coast Jay. 



This form has been recorded usually ^^/ronta/is, though Kaeding was 

 inclined to refer it to stelleri and Fisher gives it as stelleri from Mon- 

 terey. * I have long considered it distinct, but had no good examples of 

 stelleri for comparison. Fortunately Grinnell has been able to point out 

 the differences and name the race. Fiske. — The Coast Jay is a resident of 

 the redwoods. A nest with three eggs found May 21, 1890, was very 

 large, built in the fork of a tan-bark oak, fifteen feet from the ground. 

 The exterior of the nest was of twigs and small roots, intermixed with 

 mud; the lining was of root fibres. Kaeding. — Common; breeds. A com- 

 parison between the jays of the Coast Range and of the Sierra Nevada 

 show the birds of the coast to be decidedly referable to the form stelleri, 

 and not y>'6'«/a//.y as is commonly supposed. While far from typical of C 

 stelleri, the prevailing characters are of that race and are more pronounced 

 in birds from Marin county than in those from Monterey county. Emer- 

 son. — Common all through the forest ranges. Very shy; has a habit of 

 alighting on the lower limbs of the trees, then gradually going to the top 

 from one limb to another. 



57. Aphelocoma calif ornica ( Fz>.). California Jay. 



Emerson. — Not as common in the forest as the preceding, but like 

 them great robbers of woodpeckers' store of acorns. Kaeding. — Very 

 common; young out of the nest May 10. 



5*^. Corvus corax sinuatus ( Wagl^. Raven. 



Emcrsju gives the raven as rarely seen and Skirm gives it as rare.3 



59. Corvus americanus And. Crow. 



Recorded from the southeastern part of the county by Fiske. Kaed- 

 ing saw but one. It was seen but once by Emerson, who says, on the 

 authority of Cooper, that it was quite common at Santa Cruz in 1866 in 

 the willows along the river bottoms. 



60. Agelaius gubernator californicus Nelson. Bicolored Blackbird. 

 Kaeding found the red-wing not common but breeding. Skirm gives 



it as a common resident. Cooper says: "According to my observations this 

 species inhabits chiefly the interior of the State, Santa Cruz being the only 

 point on the coast where I have seen them."* 



61. Agelaius tricolor ( ^// of.). Tricolored Blackbird. 



Emerson. — This and the preceding are common about swamp holes 



1. Condor, II; 1900, p. 127. 



2. N. A. Fauna, No. 7, p. 68. 



3. Belding, op. cit., p. 112. 



4. Belding. op. cit., p. 121. 



