BREWER'S BLACKBIRD (Euphagus 

 cyanocephalus) 



Lenstli. TO inches. Its t,'li)ssy purplisli head 

 r!istiiiu:ui^hes it from other 1)lackl)irds that do 

 not show in Ihglit a trough-shaped tail. 



Range : P.recds in the West, east to Texas, 

 Kansas, and Minnesota, and north to soiUliern 

 Canada: winters ''i\-er most of the I'nited 

 States lirecding range, smith to Guatemala. 



Ilaliits anil economic status: A'ery nnmernus 

 in the A\'est .and in fall gathers in iiumense 

 flocks, especially about barnyards and corrals. 

 During the cherry season in California Brew- 

 er's blackbird is much in the orchards. In one 

 case they were seen to eat freely of cherries: 

 but when a neighboring fruit raiser be.gan to 

 plow his iircbard almost e\"er\" blaekliird in tlie 

 Aicinity was ujion the n(.\\l\' opened .grnuufl 

 and close at the plowman's heels in its ea.ger- 

 ness to get the insects exposed bj- the plow. 

 Caterpillars and pups form the largest item of 

 animal food (about I_> tier cent). Many of 

 these are cutworms, and cntton bollworms or 

 corn earworms were fnund in to stomachs and 

 codling-moth pupre in ii. Beetles constitute 

 o\-er Ti iier cent of the food. The ve.getable 

 food is j)racticall_\' cont.ained in three items — 

 grain, fruit, and weed seeds. Grain, mostly 

 oats, amounts to 54 per cent ; fruit, largely 

 cherries, 4 per cent, and weed seeds, not quite 

 9 per cent. The grain is probably mostly wild, 

 volunteer, or waste, so that the bird does most 

 dama,ge by eating fruit. 



BULLOCK'S ORIOLE (Icterus bullocki) 



Length, about S inches. Our only oriole with 

 top of head and throat black and cheeks 

 orange. 



Range : Breeds from South Dakota, Ne- 

 braska, and Kansas to the Pacific Ocean and 

 from southern Canada to northern ]\Iexico ; 

 winters in Mexico. 



Habits and economic status: In the AVest 

 this liird takes the place occupied in the East 

 by the Baltimore oriole. In food, nesting 

 habits, and song the birds are similar. Both 

 are migratory and remain on their summer 

 range only some five or si.x inonths. They 

 take kindl_\' to ijrehards, gardens, and the vi- 

 cinity of f.'irm liuildings and often live in vil- 

 lages .and city parks. Their diet is largely made 

 up of insects that infest orchards and gardens. 

 When fruit trees are in bloom they are con- 

 stantly busy among the blossoms and save 

 man)r of them from destruction. In the food 

 of Bullock's oriole beetles amount to ,35 per 

 cent and nearly all are harmful. jNIany of 

 these are wee\ils, some of which live upon 

 acorns and other nuts. .Vnts and wasps amount 

 to 15 per cent of the diet. The black olive 

 scale was found in 45 of the 162 stomachs ex- 

 amined. Caterpillars, with a few moths and 

 pupae, are the largest iten] of food and amount 

 to over 41 per cent. Among these were cod- 

 ling-moth larvae. The vegetable food is prac- 

 tically all fruit C19 per cent) and in cherry 

 season consists largely of that fruit. Eating 

 small fruits is the bird's worst trait, but it will 

 do this harm only when very numerous. 



CALIFORNIA JAY (Aphelocoma 

 californica) 



Length, 12 inches. Distinguished from other 

 jays within its range by its decidedly whitish 

 imderparts and brown ]i;itcli on the back. 



Range: Resident in Californi.a. north to 

 southern Washington, au<l south tcj southern 

 Lower California. 



Habits and economic status: This jay has the 

 same general traits of character as the eastern 

 blue jay. He is the same noisy, rollicking fel- 

 low and occupies a corresponding position in 

 liird society. Robbing the nests of smaller 

 birds is a favorite pastime, and he is a persist- 

 ent sp}' upon domestic fowls and well knows 

 the meaning of the cackle of a hen. Xot only 

 does he steal eggs, but he kills young chicks. 

 The insect food of this jay constitutes about 

 one-tenth of its annual sustenance. The inclu- 

 sion of grasshoppers and caterpillars makes 

 this part of the bird's food in its fa\'or. But 

 the remainder of its anim.al diet includes alto- 

 gether too large a proportion of benelicial 

 birds and their eggs, and in this respect it ap- 

 pears to be worse than its eastern relati\'e, the 

 likie jay. While its vegetable food is composed 

 largely of mast, at times its liking for culti- 

 vated fruit and grain makes it a most unwel- 

 come visitor to the orchard ,and farm. In con- 

 clusion, it may be said that over much of its 

 range this j.ay is too abundant for the best in- 

 terests of agriculture and horticulture. 



BLUE JAY (Cyanocitta cristata) 



Length, iijj inches. The brilliant blue of 

 the wings and tail combined with the black 

 crescent of the upper breast and the crested 

 head distinguish this species. 



Range : Resident in the eastern United States 

 and southern Canad.a, west to the Dakotas, 

 Colorado, and Texas. 



Habits and economic status: The blue jay is 

 of a dual nature. Cautious and silent in the 

 \'icinity of its nest, away from it it is bold and 

 noisy. Sly in the commission of mischief, it is 

 ever ready to scream "thief" at the slightest 

 disturbance. As usual in such cases, its re- 

 marks are applicable ti:i none more than itself, 

 a fact neighboring nest holders know to their 

 sorrow, for during the breeding season the jay 

 lays hea\'y toll upon the eggs and young of 

 other birds, and in doing so deprives us of the 

 services of species more beneficial than itself. 

 Approximately three-fourths of the annual 

 food of the blue jay is vegetable matter, the 

 greater ji.art of which is composed of mast — 

 that is, acorns, chestnuts, beechnuts, and the 

 like. Corn is the principal cultivated crop upon 

 which this bird feeds, but stomach analysis in- 

 dicates that most of the corn taken is waste 

 grain. Such noxious insects as wood-boring 

 beetles, grasshoppers, eggs of various caterpil- 

 lars, and scale insects constitute about one- 

 fifth of its food. 



24 



