ean AE HN 
Ht Hy | Nn i 
HH hy |g) 
AW 
i \ t : y 
scam 
N the Jay we have another bird which is partly 
I friend and partly foe. The gamekeeper detests 
it, because of its fondness for the eggs and newly-hatched 
young of partridges and pheasants. The gardener dislikes 
it almost equally, because of its partiality for cherries, and 
also for young peas and beans. So it is persecuted by 
both, and in many parts of the country is but rarely seen. 
Yet it also devours large numbers of mischievous insects, 
as will be seen from the following dietary, drawn up some 
years ago by M. Prevost Paradol : 
January, cockchafer grubs, acorns, and berries; Feb- 
ruary, various pupe, grain, and wild seeds; March, grubs, 
insects, and com; April, grubs, beetles, and snails; May, 
cockchafers and grasshoppers; June, birds’ eggs, chafers, 
a9 
