570 BRITISH BIRDS. 



on the head except on the cheeks. The rest of the Jays^ with one or more 

 forms then unknown to Wallace^ are nothing but local races of our 

 Common Jay. 



The typical form of the Common Jay is a resident bird throughout 

 Europe except in the south-east. In Scandinavia it is found as far north 

 as the Arctic circle ; in Russia up to lat. 63°^ ranging eastwards to the 

 valley of the Volga. Eastwards through South Siberia^ the valley of the 

 Amoor^ and the north island of Japan^ extending southwards into North 

 China, G. brandti occurs, differing in being greyer on the back, and in having 

 the ground-colour of the head and nape rich chestnut, instead of pale 

 vinous on the former shading into darker vinous on the latter. In the 

 south island of Japan, however, the European form almost reaj)pears, 

 G. japonicus differing from our bird only in having the ground-colour 

 of the head somewhat whiter, and in ha-sdng the black on the cheeks 

 extending upwards to the lores. In Eastern Turkey, Asia Minor, the 

 Caucasus, Palestine, and South Persia a black-headed Jay is found, 

 G. atricapUlus, which principally differs from our bird in having the crown 

 and najje black and the feathers of the forehead and throat nearly white. 

 In Asia Minor many examples (G. anatolice) have the darker forehead and 

 throat of our bird, but retain the black head. On the south-western 

 shores of the Caspian the Jays have the upper and underparts a much richer 

 vinous, and the black feathers of the head have indications of rufous 

 margins. This species I have named G. caspius, which is represented 

 further to the south in North Persia by G. hyrcaniis, which is still richer 

 in colour, and has the margins to the dark feathers of the head almost as 

 much developed as in the typical form. A slightly modified form is also 

 found in Algeria, G. cervicalis, differing principally from the Common Jay 

 in having the cheeks much whiter, the feathers on the crown almost 

 entirely black, and the nape a much richer rufous than the back. It is 

 probable that all these forms interbreed whenever they get the opportunity. 

 In Asia Minor intermediate forms occur between G. anatolim and G. atri- 

 capUlus. Bogdanow states that the Jay which is found in the valley of the 

 Kama, and which he iiames G. sewerzoirii, is intermediate between G. glan- 

 darius and G. brandti ; and Messrs. Alleon and Vian say that in the neigh- 

 bourhood of Constantinople intermediate forms between G. glandarius and 

 G. atricapillijs occur. The peculiarity in the present species which makes 

 it somewhat exceptional is that the Siberian bird (G. brandti), instead of 

 being an arctic, has the appearance of being a tropical form, which may 

 possibly be accounted for by its being only found in the extreme south of 

 Siberia. 



The Jay is essentially a bird of the woods. Like most showy birds, it 

 loves seclusion and finds a congenial haunt in our game-coverts, forests 

 and shrubberies. Woods thickly interspersed with large clumps of hollies 



