230 BIRDS OF THE WORLD 



white, having the appearance of being covered with 

 powder. Why these feathers should thus be shed and 

 never regained, is a mystery which many naturalists 

 have attempted to solve. See Plate 20, Fig. 117. 



The Rook is as abundant in Europe as the Common 

 Crow here, living in societies called rookeries, com- 

 posed of many thousands of birds and nests. Like 

 our species, too, it is a great pest to farmers, but its 

 extreme cunning enables it to avoid many traps set for 

 its destruction. Rooks are not considered as intelli- 

 gent, however, as the Crow and the Raven, though 

 they are sometimes tamed for pets. The young birds 

 are fairly good eating, and many of them are shot for 

 the table. 



The Jays are found in both the Old World and the 

 New, usually in wooded districts. All have harsh, dis- 

 cordant voices, but wonderful ability to mimic other 

 birds. Many of them are very beautifully coloured. 

 They have long tails, and short rounded wings. A 

 character that distinguishes the Jays is their pecu- 

 liarly light, bounding hop. 



The European Jay is a prettily coloured bird 

 inhabiting many parts of Europe, and is especially 

 abundant in Great Britain, in spite of ruthless perse- 

 cution at the hands of game-keepers, who grossly 

 exaggerate the harm it does. It feeds largely on 

 acorns and other forest seeds. See Plate 20, Fig. 119. 



The American Blue Jay is very striking in colour, 

 being beautifully marked in various shades of blue, 

 with a mixture of black and white. Like its European 

 relative, it has a feathered crest, which it constantly 



