THE BLUE JAY. 357 



succeed in rearing a brood of young. It is common in the woods to hear Vireos 

 himenting for their young which the Jay has forcibly carried away. Vast num- 

 bers of eggs are eaten and the nests torn up. From the door of my house I 

 have seen a Blue Jay take and devour the eggs of a Red-eyed Vireo whose nest 

 had been suspended from the tips of a low hickory bough overhanging the 

 pathway." 



Mr. Manly Hardy, of Brewer, Maine, fully corroborates these statements, 

 writing me as follows: "It is a great robber of birds' nests, taking both eggs 

 and young. I also feel quite sure that in some cases it kills adult birds. I once 

 saw one pass me with what I thought an unusually large crop. I fired, killing 

 the bird, and found also a slate-colored Junco, which had been pecked some by 

 the Jay, and I believe was killed by him. This occurred in the fall, dining the 

 migration of the Juncos. There is little doubt that they destroy many nests 

 of eggs and young; all of the small birds say so. Let a Robin or a Pigeon 

 come among them and you hear no outcry, and a Flicker or any other Wood- 

 pecker creates no disturbance; but let a Blue Jay, Grackle, or Crow put in an 

 appearance, and every bird in range begins to call him a thief, and I never 

 knew them to slander their neighbors. Just think it over and see how this 

 agrees with your experience." 



I might add more evidence to the same eifect, but consider it unnecessary 

 and think this charge fully substantiated. However, notwithstanding all his 

 vices, I can not help admiring our Blue Jay, for he has good traits as well. 

 Cunning, inquisitive, an admirable mimic, full of mischief; in some localities 

 extremely shy, in others exactly the reverse, it is difficult to paint him in his 

 true colors. Not a few writei's call him a bully and a coward, and perhaps he 

 deserves these names at times; but instances are not lacking which show that 

 he possesses courage in the defense of his young, is a devoted parent, and will 

 sometimes fiercely attack man himself in protecting his nestlings. But it is 

 unfortunate that he shows so little consideration for the feelings of other birds 

 when he despoils them of their young. 



What could be more commendable than the following incident, related by 

 Mr. Frithof Kumlien, of Milwaukee, Wisconsin? 



^^ Reason or instinct f — I made some observations last summer on the habits 

 of the Blue Jay (Cyanocitta cristatd) which, if not showing reason, certainly 

 show a degree of sympathy and kindness worthy of imitation by animals of a 

 higher order. Last August (1887), on an old farm in Jefferson County, Wis- 

 consin, my attention was attracted by the notes of a Blue Jay, not the ordinary 

 cry, which could be heard at almost any time, as they are very numerous there, 

 but a series of regular calls, followed by answers from a neighboring tree. 

 There was something so peculiarly suggestive of a communication of thought 

 about the sound that I went to the place, and saw an old Blue Jay perched on 

 a fence, some distance from a tree where there were several others. 



"On my nearing the bird the calls from the tree became more frequent and 

 loud, changing from a low, pleasant, communicative tone to a shrill alarm, wliich 

 became more frequent and intense as I approached. Thinking that he must be 



