BIRDS OF NOKTH AND MIDDLE AMERICA. 287 



mary and style of coloration; Oyanopolius having only the pileum, sides 

 of head, and hindneck black, the under parts being whitish or pale 

 vinaceous-gray, the back, scapulars, and rump light gray or vinaceous- 

 gray, the wings and tail light grayish blue. 



The only other American genus of jays with a very long and grad- 

 uated tail is Calocitta, of Mexico and Central America, which has 

 uncovered nostrils, a conspicuous recurved crest, and the plumage 

 chiefly blue. 



KEY TO THE SPECIES OF PICA. 



a. Bill and naked orbital space black. (Western North America in general.) 



Pica pica hudsonia (p. 287) 

 aa. Bill and naked orbital space yellow. (California. ) Pica nuttalli (p. 291) 



PICA PICA HUDSONIA (Sabine). 

 AUEBICAN IIAGFIE. 



Similar to P. p. pica," hut averaging decidedly larger; feathers of 

 throat with setaceous shafts less developed, and with more or less con- 

 cealed white spotting; white spot on inner web of first (innermost) 

 primary averaging much smaller, rarely, if ever, occupying the edge 

 of the web; secondaries averaging more greenish blue. 



Achtlts {sexes alike). — Head, neck, chest, upper breast, back, lesser 

 wing-coverts, lower rump, upper and under tail-coverts, anal region, 

 thighs, lower abdomen, and under wing-coverts, uniform black, the 

 crown glossed with bronze or bronzy greenish, the back faintty glossed 

 with bluish green or bluish in certain lights; scapulars, lower breast, 

 upper abdomen, sides, and flanks, white; a broad band of grayish 

 white across upper rump; prevailing color of middle and greater wing- 

 coverts and secondaries metallic steel blue, varying to bronzy green; 

 alula, primary coverts, and primaries blackish, glossed, more or less, 

 with greenish bronze, bluish green, or steel bluish, the inner webs of 

 the primaries mostly white; this most extensive on the longer quills, 

 on the first restricted to a large subterminal patch or spot, usually 

 more or less broadly margined along the edge of the web with blackish; 

 occasionally the outermost secondary also is marked with a subtermi- 

 nal white spot; tail bright metallic bronzy green, passing into metallic 



a[Corvus'] pica Linnaeus, Syst. Nat., ed. 10, i, 1758, 106. — Pica pica Sharpe, Cat. 

 Birds Brit. Mus., iii, 1877, 62, part. — Corvus rusticus Scopoli, Ann., i, 1769, 38. — Pica 

 rustica Dresser, Birds Europe, pt. xxii, 1873 (vol. iv, 509, pi. 260). — Pica melanoleuca 

 Vieillot, Nouv. Diet. d'Hist. Nat., xxvi, 1818, 121. — Pica albiventris Vieillot, Faun. 

 Fran?., 1820, 119. — Pica europxa Boie, Isis, 1826, 551. — Pica gemianica BrehmYog. 

 Deutschl., 1831, 177.— Pica septerdrionalis Brehm, Vog. Deutschl., 1831, 178. — Pica 

 hiemalis Brehm, Vijg. Deutschl., 1831, 178. — Pica caudata Keyserling and Blasius, 

 Wirb. Eur., 1840, 45; Gould, Birds Europe, iii, 1835?, pi. 216; Birds Gt. Brit., iii, 

 1873,' pi. 216; Yarrell, Hjst. Brit. Birds, ii, 1839, 107.— Pica varia Schlegel, Rev. 

 Crit., 1844, 54; Dier. NederL, Vog., 1861, pi. 13, figs. 7, 7a; Mus. Pays-Bas, Coraces, 

 1867, 390.— Pica vulgaris Brehm, Journ. fiir Orn., 1858, 173. (Europe.) 



