THE BLUE JAY AND ITS FOOD. 
By F. E. L. Brat, 
Assistant Biologist, U. S. Department of Ayriculture. 
GENERAL REMARKS. 
Of the various birds that enliven the groves and orchards, few are 
more conspicuous than the common blue jay (Cyanocitta cristata) 
(fig. 40). Its loud and rather harsh voice, striking colors, and obtrusive 
actions attract attention when other birds equally abundant remain 
unnoticed. An accurate knowledge of its food habits is a matter of 
some importance from an economic point of view, since the bird is 
abundant and feeds largely upon grain and other hard seeds, although 
the proportion supplied by the farmer’s crops has never been accu- 
rately determined. It has also been shown that the jay occasionally 
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Fia. 40.—The common blue jay. 
preys upon the eggs or young of other birds, and some observers have 
declared it an habitual nest robber and thief, but the extent of its 
nest-robbing proclivities is unknown, and a detailed examination of 
its food is necessary in order to throw more light on these points. 
The blue jay is distributed over the whole of the United States east 
of the Great Plains, from the Gulf of Mexico to Manitoba and New- 
foundland. It remains constant in form and color throughout most 
of this region, except in Florida and along the Gulf coast, where a 
smaller race (Cyanocitta cristata florincola) occurs, While jays com- 
monly resort to the forest to breed, they do not by any means confine 
themselves to the woods, but visit orchards, meadows, gardens, and 
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