364 NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS. 



Genus PICICORVUS Bonaparte. (Page 351, pi. XCIX., fig. 1.) 



Species. 



Adult: Uniform ash-gray, becoming white on fore-part of head; wings and 

 two middle tail-feathers glossy black, the secondaries broadly tipped with white ; 

 tail, except middle feathers, mainly white. Young : Similar to adult, but colors 

 duller and browner. Length about 12.00-13.00, wing 7.10-8.00, tail 5.10-5.40. JSTest 

 in coniferous trees (sometimes in cavities), bulky, composed of dried twigs, lined 

 with rootlets, etc. Eggs 1.27 X -94, dull white, sparingly speckled, chiefly on larger 

 end, with brown and purplish gray. Sab. Higher coniferous forests of western 

 North America ; north to Putnam Elver, Alaska, south to Arizona, east to (and in- 

 cluding) Eoeky Mountains... 491. P. columbianus (Wils.). Clarke's Nutcracker. 



Genus CYANOCEPHALUS Bonaparte. (Page 351, pi. XCIX., fig. 2.) 



Species. 



Adult : Uniform grayish blue, becoming deeper blue on head, the throat bright 

 blue, streaked with white. Young : Uniform dull grayish blue, lighter beneath. 

 Length about 10.00-11.75, wing 5.70-6.00, tail 4.80-4.85. Nest in pifion trees, 5-10 

 or more feet up, bulky, composed of shreds of pifion, cedar, and sage-brush bark, 

 grass- and weed-stalks, small twigs, etc. Eggs 3-5, 1.16 X -85, pale greenish blue 

 or bluish or greenish white, thickly but finely speckled with olive-brown. Sab. 

 Plateau region of western North America, chiefly between Bocky Mountains and 

 Sierra Nevada, entirely across United States. 



492. C. cyanocephalus (Wied). Pinon Jay. 



Family STURNIDiE. — The Starlings. (Page 322.) 



Genera. 

 (Characters same as those given for the Family) Sturnus. (Page 364.) 



Genus STURNUS Linn^us. (Page 364, pi. C, fig. 3.) 



Species. 



Adult in summer (sexes alike) : Glossy greenish and purplish black, speckled, 

 more or less extensively and conspicuously, with light bufly brown and whitish ; 

 greater wing-coverts, secondaries, quills, and tail-feathers edged with light brown- 

 ish buff; bill yellow. Adult in winter : Light brown (on upper parts) and whitish 

 (on lower parts) spotting much more conspicuous than in summer, often obscuring 

 or nearly concealing the underlying glossy green and purple ; bill blackish. Young : 

 Plain grayish brown, the throat whitish, edges of greater wing-coverts, secondaries, 

 quills, and tail-feathers light dull buffy. Length about 7.50-8.50, wing 5.00-5.10, tail 



